The World Wide Web (Web), the largest multimedia system in existence, has been heralded by many as the perfect tool for lifelong learning. One topic mentioned in this regard is science, since many adults have little prior knowledge about it and the field is constantly changing. Yet little empirical research has been done to examine how web documents may actually affect the learning process. This article looks at learning theories that point to the importance of affective attributes of messages that may be particularly applicable to the mixed medium that is the Web and then focuses on the effects of textual elements on the learning of science from both static and interactive texts.