  Applications of relativistic light front dynamics to computing wave functions
of heavy nuclei are reviewed. The motivation for this is the desire to find
wave functions, expressed in terms of the plus-momentum variable, that simplify
the analyses of high energy experiments such as deep inelastic scattering,
Drell-Yan production, (e,e') and (p,p').Some examples of ordinary quantum
mechanics are solved to show that the formalism is tractable. Light-front
quantization is reviewed briefly and applied to: infinite nuclear matter within
the mean field approximation; a simple static source theory; finite nuclei
using the mean field approximation; low-energy pion-nucleon scattering using a
chiral Lagrangian; nucleon-nucleon scattering, within the one boson exchange
approximation; and, infinite nuclear matter including the effects of
two-nucleon correlations. Standard good results for nuclear saturation
properties are obtained, with a possible improvement in the computed nuclear
compressibility. Manifest rotational invariance is not used as an aid in doing
calculations, but it does emerge in the results. It seems that nuclear physics
can be done in a manner in which modern nuclear dynamics is respected, boost
invariance in the $z$-direction is preserved, and in which rotational
invariance is maintained. A salient feature is that $\omega,\sigma$ and $\pi$
mesons are important constituents of nuclei. It seems possible to find
Lagrangians that yield reasonable descriptions of nuclear deep inelastic
scattering and Drell-Yan reactions. Furthermore, the presence of the $\sigma$
and $\omega$ mesons could provide a nuclear enhancement of the ratio of the
cross sections for longitudinally and transversely polarized virtual photons in
accord with recent measurements by the HERMES collaboration.
