  Numerical studies of the plane symmetric, vacuum Gowdy universe on $T^3
\times R$ yield strong support for the conjectured asymptotically velocity term
dominated (AVTD) behavior of its evolution toward the singularity except,
perhaps, at isolated spatial points. A generic solution is characterized by
spiky features and apparent ``discontinuities'' in the wave amplitudes. It is
shown that the nonlinear terms in the wave equations drive the system
generically to the ``small velocity'' AVTD regime and that the spiky features
are caused by the absence of these terms at isolated spatial points.
