  The question whether magnetic fields play an important role in the processes
of molecular cloud and star formation has been debated for decades. Recent
observations have revealed a simple picture that may help illuminate these
questions: magnetic fields have a tendency to preserve their orientation at all
scales that have been probed - from 100-pc scale inter-cloud media down to
sub-pc scale cloud cores. This ordered morphology has implications for the way
in which self-gravity and turbulence interact with magnetic fields: both
gravitational contraction and turbulent velocities should be anisotropic, due
to the influence of dynamically important magnetic fields. Such anisotropy is
now observed. Here we review these recent observations and discuss how they can
improve our understanding of cloud/star formation.
