diff --git a/collects/scheme/place.ss b/collects/scheme/place.ss
index 4a578d48ad..10180369be 100644
--- a/collects/scheme/place.ss
+++ b/collects/scheme/place.ss
@@ -1,10 +1,15 @@
-(module place '#%kernel
-  (#%require '#%place)
+#lang scheme/base
+(require '#%place)
 
-  (#%provide place
-             place-sleep
-             place-wait 
-             place-channel-send
-             place-channel-recv
-             place-channel?
-             place?))
+(define (place-channel-send/recv ch msg)
+  (place-channel-send ch msg)
+  (place-channel-recv ch))
+
+(provide place
+         place-sleep
+         place-wait 
+         place-channel-send
+         place-channel-recv
+         place-channel?
+         place?
+         place-channel-send/recv)
diff --git a/collects/scribblings/places/places.scrbl b/collects/scribblings/places/places.scrbl
index e94ca7c600..9b7d49ca75 100644
--- a/collects/scribblings/places/places.scrbl
+++ b/collects/scribblings/places/places.scrbl
@@ -49,6 +49,12 @@ hardware threads.
   Returns @scheme[#t] if @scheme[x] is a place-channel object.
 }
 
+@defproc[(place-channel-send/recv [ch place-channel?] [x any/c]) void]{
+  Sends an immutable message @scheme[x] on channel @scheme[ch] and then 
+  waits for a repy message.
+  Returns an immutable message received on channel @scheme[ch].
+}
+
 @section[#:tag "example"]{How Do I Keep Those Cores Busy?}
 
 This code launches two places passing 1 and 2 as the initial channels 
@@ -70,10 +76,19 @@ This is the code for the place-worker.ss module that each place will execute.
    (printf "IN PLACE ~a~n" x)))
 ]
 
+@section[#:tag "place-channels"]{Place Channels}
+@;@defproc[(make-place-channel) channel?]{
+@;Creates and returns a new channel. 
+
+Place channels can be used with @scheme[place-channel-recv], or as a
+@tech{synchronizable event} (see @secref["sync"]) to receive a value
+through the channel. The channel can be used with @scheme[place-channel-send]
+to send a value through the channel.
 
 @section[#:tag "messagepassingparallelism"]{Message Passing Parallelism}
 
 Places can only communicate by passing immutable messages on place-channels.
+Only immutable pairs, vectors, and structs can be communicated across places channels.
 
 @section[#:tag "logging"]{Architecture and Garbage Collection}
 
diff --git a/src/mzscheme/src/env.c b/src/mzscheme/src/env.c
index 7a42cea8d0..9d15f93356 100644
--- a/src/mzscheme/src/env.c
+++ b/src/mzscheme/src/env.c
@@ -634,7 +634,8 @@ static void make_kernel_env(void)
 #ifndef NO_REGEXP_UTILS
   MZTIMEIT(regexp, scheme_regexp_initialize(env));
 #endif
-  scheme_init_parameterization();
+  MZTIMEIT(params, scheme_init_parameterization());
+  MZTIMEIT(places, scheme_init_places_once());
 
   MARK_START_TIME();
 
diff --git a/src/mzscheme/src/places.c b/src/mzscheme/src/places.c
index 0c68cc86e7..63bee669c7 100644
--- a/src/mzscheme/src/places.c
+++ b/src/mzscheme/src/places.c
@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@ Scheme_Object *scheme_place_async_channel_create();
 Scheme_Object *scheme_place_bi_channel_create();
 Scheme_Object *scheme_place_bi_peer_channel_create(Scheme_Object *orig);
 static void scheme_place_bi_channel_set_signal(Scheme_Object *cho);
+static int scheme_place_channel_ready(Scheme_Object *so);
 
 void scheme_place_async_send(Scheme_Place_Async_Channel *ch, Scheme_Object *o);
 Scheme_Object *scheme_place_async_recv(Scheme_Place_Async_Channel *ch);
@@ -82,6 +83,13 @@ void scheme_init_place(Scheme_Env *env)
 
 }
 
+void scheme_init_places_once() {
+#ifdef MZ_USE_PLACES
+  scheme_add_evt(scheme_place_type,            (Scheme_Ready_Fun)scheme_place_channel_ready, NULL, NULL, 1); 
+  scheme_add_evt(scheme_place_bi_channel_type, (Scheme_Ready_Fun)scheme_place_channel_ready, NULL, NULL, 1);
+#endif
+}
+
 #ifdef MZ_USE_PLACES
 
 /************************************************************************/
@@ -407,6 +415,11 @@ Scheme_Object *scheme_places_deep_copy(Scheme_Object *so)
   }
 
   switch (so->type) {
+    case scheme_true_type:
+    case scheme_false_type:
+    case scheme_null_type:
+      new_so = so;
+      break;
     case scheme_char_string_type: /*43*/
       new_so = scheme_make_sized_offset_char_string(SCHEME_CHAR_STR_VAL(so), 0, SCHEME_CHAR_STRLEN_VAL(so), 1);
       break;
@@ -434,9 +447,6 @@ Scheme_Object *scheme_places_deep_copy(Scheme_Object *so)
         return pair;
       }
       break;
-    case scheme_null_type:
-      new_so = so;
-      break;
     case scheme_vector_type:
       {
         Scheme_Object *vec;
@@ -754,6 +764,18 @@ static int scheme_place_async_ch_ready(Scheme_Place_Async_Channel *ch) {
   return ready;
 }
 
+static int scheme_place_channel_ready(Scheme_Object *so) {
+  Scheme_Place_Bi_Channel *ch;
+  if (SAME_TYPE(SCHEME_TYPE(so), scheme_place_type)) {
+    ch = (Scheme_Place_Bi_Channel *) ((Scheme_Place *) so)->channel;
+  }
+  else {
+    ch = (Scheme_Place_Bi_Channel *)so;
+  }
+
+  return scheme_place_async_ch_ready((Scheme_Place_Async_Channel *) ch->recvch);
+}
+
 Scheme_Object *scheme_place_async_recv(Scheme_Place_Async_Channel *ch) {
   Scheme_Object *msg = NULL;
   while(1) {
diff --git a/src/mzscheme/src/schpriv.h b/src/mzscheme/src/schpriv.h
index 77b2f31336..58a7598f5d 100644
--- a/src/mzscheme/src/schpriv.h
+++ b/src/mzscheme/src/schpriv.h
@@ -248,6 +248,7 @@ void scheme_init_foreign_globals();
 void scheme_init_foreign(Scheme_Env *env);
 #endif
 void scheme_init_place(Scheme_Env *env);
+void scheme_init_places_once();
 void scheme_init_futures(Scheme_Env *env);
 
 void scheme_init_print_buffers_places(void);