Ten papers that address the theoretical advances being made in various areas of specialization in physical education and exercise science are included in this volume of American Academy of Physical Education Papers. General trends are reviewed in selected areas, including the social sciences, the biological sciences, motor learning, curriculum and instruction, and history and philosophy. Introductory addresses are given by G. Alan Stull ("The President's Message: The Academy at the Cutting Edge") and Margaret J. Safrit ("The Cutting Edge: An Introduction"). The following papers are then presented: (1) "The Cutting Edge of Research in Physical Education and Exercise Science: The Search for Understanding" (George E. Stelmach); (2) "Motor Learning: Future Lines of Research" (Robert W. Christina); (3) "Frontiers in Psychology of Exercise and Sport" (Dorothy V. Harris); (4) "Physical Activity, Physical Fitness, Exercise, and the Public's Health" (Steven N. Blair, Harold W. Kohl, and Kenneth E. Powell); (5) "Happenings of the Fifth Order: The Cutting Edge in Curriculum Research" (Ann E. Jewett); (6) "The Future of Research on Pedagogy: Balancing on the Cutting Edge" (Lawrence F. Locke); (7) "Sport History in the 1990s: Prospects and Problems" (Roberta J. Park); (8) "On the Edge (of Oblivion)" (Seymour Kleinman); (9) "The Cutting Edge in Biomechanics" (Peter R. Cavanagh); and (10) "Ruth B. Glassow: The Cutting Edge" (Muriel R. Sloan). (JD)