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(CNN) – Democrats omitted the word "God" from their 2012 platform, a change from the party's 2008 document and a noticeable split from Republicans, who mention God ten times in their official party stance.
In 2008, Democrats wrote, "We need a government that stands up for the hopes, values, and interests of working people, and gives everyone willing to work hard the chance to make the most of their God-given potential."
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The paragraph extolling the value of hard work in 2012 reads, "We gather to reclaim the basic bargain that built the largest middle class and the most prosperous nation on Earth-the simple principle that in America, hard work should pay off, responsibility should be rewarded, and each one of us should be able to go as far as our talent and drive take us."
David Brody of the Christian Broadcasting Network first reported on the exclusion of the word "God" in the Democrats' platform.
Democrats did include a section in their 2012 platform specifically devoted to faith, writing faith "has always been a central part of the American story, and it has been a driving force of progress and justice throughout our history."
"There is no conflict between supporting faith-based institutions and respecting our Constitution, and a full commitment to both principles is essential for the continued flourishing of both faith and country," the document reads.
A Democratic official pointed out that 2008's reference to God was not specifically about faith, but rather about growing the middle class, and that the 2012 language specifically referring to faith was identical to 2008's document. The official also noted that the word "faith" appears 11 times in the document, "religion" or "religious" 9 times, "church" 2 times (one time appearing within a quote), and "clergy" 1 time.
The lack of references to God in the 2012 platform is a change both from the 2008 document, with one reference to God, and the 2004 platform, which mentioned God seven times, as noted by The Blaze.
In 2000 the Democrats' official party platform mentioned God four times.
David Silverman, president of American Atheists, said the exclusion of "God" in the Democrats' document was a step forward in including non-religious Americans in the official party stance.
"We are obviously happy that the Democrats are taking these positive steps," Silverman wrote. "We are looking for the inclusion of everyone and we are hopeful that that inclusion will continue to the point that we can depend on Mr. Obama to repeal the faith based initiatives and reinforce the separation of church and state."
"It comes as a pleasant surprise," he added. "It is something that we have been pushing for and is certainly a positive step. But it is only one step and I would like to see action more than words."
"God" is the second conspicuous omission from the Democrats' 2012 platform. The party also removed a 2008 reference to Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, a diplomatic flashpoint that Republicans decried as a slight to the Jewish state.
In the Republicans' official 2012 party platform, God is mentioned ten times in various forms, including seven cases of the phrase "God-given."
CNN's Dan Merica contributed to this report.
YAY! remove all religion from the government. thank you!
That's a real shocker. All the God haters in the Democratic party prevailed. Isn't this also telling, " The party also removed a 2008 reference to Jerusalem as the capital of Israel." Something we all know is Obama's distaste for Israel behind closed doors and his luke warm receptions in public for the PM. As with most of his views they evolve farther left with each passing day in office.
Simple choice in this election: Mitt Phony for the rich, Obama for the middle class. If Mitt Phony is elected, get ready for the beggining of the Bush era but this time on steroids. Complete collapse of the final system , also known as deregulation. Mitt Phony's motto "Make me President now, I'll give you the details later"
We also believe in our God-Given Free Will (choice).
We don't wear it on a sleeve and then kill our fellow-Americans by starving them to death or sending their jobs overseas.
Shame on Mormon Mitt and Lyin Ryan.
"God" really should not be part of the platform in a secular government. "In God We Trust" was added in the 1950s....and re-affirmed by the Tea Party House earlier this year.
This platform is about American Middle Class. Obama12.
So what the GOP mentions God several times in their platform and the Democrat a couple of times. A lot of people mention God, but is it The God of the Bible, meaning God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Ghost–The Triune God; and who Jesus is to Christians, Lord and Savior, a belief that Romney and his religion reject(Then how can true Christians support this???) What also matters a great deal is practicing Christian values and principles while at the same time accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior. Some politicians use and abuse Christians for political gain. What makes it so pitiful, some Christians know this and will blindly follow the GOP rhetoric anyway. While I do have some issues in the Democratic Platform, I have plenty of problems with the GOP/Tea Party Platform and what they actually say, do and what's really scary, what they propose to do! If R/R are elected Lord help us; it will be too late days, weeks and months later to say why did I vote for R/R!
Separate church and state, like the founders wanted it. By the way, you right wingnuts do know that $12 trillion of our national debt is attributed to republican presidents, don't you?
If anyome really believes that Obama care about the middle class, you are truly deceived and have drank the kool-aid. In Socialism which is where he is taking us there is no classes and no democracy, just government rule. WAKE UP PEOPLE!!
"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men." For any people claiming to be Christians who do not recognize the above quote, it comes from Jesus admonition to his followers as written in Matthew. You may not be familiar with that book as it occurs in those inconvenient books in the Bible between the Old Testament and the Letters of Paul. You know. The ones that have the life of Jesus and his sayings. As opposed to Paul (who never met him) and his interpretations of what he thought Jesus SHOULD have said.
If the GOP is so about "God", why all the lies coming from their candidates? I was taught as a kid by Catholic nuns that lying is a sin.
Note they still have a massive section on "faith" in their platform. The sooner that we remove all religion from the public sphere, the sooner we can have rational and evidence based discussions of important policy questions.
The Democratic party has taken such a hard left turn our parents would not recognize it. This is not the party that Clinton successfully led in the 90"s. It is the party of the crazies over on MSNBC which is pretty bad because I switch around a lot and CNN, ABC, CBS and even Fox seem balanced in comparison.
I couldn't care less. I'm a lot more disturbed by:
"-the simple principle that in America, hard work should pay off, responsibility should be rewarded, and each one of us should be able to go as far as our talent and drive take us."
That's really a nice principle. Now, when Obama stops handing our hard-earned tax money over to the corporate interests that destroyed the country for the past 20 years, I'll believe him. Until then, he's just another George W Bush, and his platform is crap.
Whereas the Rethuglican Party worships GOD – the Good Ol' Dollar.
To be honest, how can any real Christian vote for either party at this point??? Our country was established on Godly principles (That is the God of the Christian Bible). Neither side agrees with the God of the Christian Bible. We don't owe Gay's a parade, they deserve to be treated like people too, but be Gay and be quiet, and we most definitely don't owe an atheists anything! Any American, especially a Christian American who disagrees with that is the most UN-patriotic person on the face of this earth. There was never a separation of Church and state either, only a separation of taxation, meaning the government was not allowed to tax the Church because what they can tax they can control, but it seems the evil one has deceived US Again (USA). Get real people; where there is no God, there is no peace!
I know the GOP had been using and abusing the christian church in america for a long long time. They proclaim to be pro christianity but betray Jusus teaching in all the programs and legislation they intruduced. Jesus said that "it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of the needle that for a reach man to enter the Kingdom of God." But the GOP continue to protect the rich at the expense of the middle class and the poor. I can't see their christianity, they do the talk but refuse to do the walk. In the other hand it depresses me to learn what the democratic party has done to God and Israel in their platform, it is a shameful act. I'm staying home on election day.
Please write another hard-hitting article on the omission of Santa Claus and the Loch Ness Monster next time. The sooner all religions are disposed of the better for humanity.
A real patriot believes in ALL Americans, not just the ones who share their religion.
There is a obvious difference here between the parties...Democrats tend to lean toward science and skepticism, which both thrive on reason, logic and proof. This is the realm of the non-religious, atheists, etc. which logically leads to less mention of religion. The Republicans pride themselves on preserving the past, tradition, and retention of old-time values, which is a reflection of the fundamentalist support, which relies on faith in a higher power.. This is the reason why 'god' isn't mentioned much by Democrats....religion is becoming increasingly a subject met with skepticism by science and free-thinkers.
When Democrats separate church from government that means that Major Nidal Hasan will have to shave his beard off and his reason for growing his beard will be unacceptable, his reason that his beard is an expression of his Muslim faith. Also, his plead guilty for religious reason which a judge could not accept but his guilty plead can be accepted if Democrats separate church from government.
"When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross."
Better to leave God absent from the platform than to simply pay lip service.
It is a political convention, for heavens sake. Not a bible study class or tent revival.


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Blatter's demeanour at last night's press conference was clearly one of defiance – it seems he really is blind to the mess the world governing body is in. Mind you, if you watch again withe sound turned down (1), his body language is less self-confident – the ceaseless paper shuffling, and constantly tweaking the pair of microphones in front to him as if a pair of nipples had suddenly been thrust at him in some seedy nightclub.
The chances then of some serious reform of FIFA on his about-to-be-extended-unopposed watch are as remote as ever. He is only vulnerable to pressure from outside stakeholders such as broadcasters and sponsors. Broadcasters are unlikely to bother too much – the World Cup will be watched as eagerly by fans whether he or Caligula's horse is in charge of FIFA. Sponsors may yet prove more difficult to accommodate however, and there are already mumblings (2). Sponsoring is not merely a questioning of gaining exposure for your brand – it only works effectively if there are shared brand values. Interestingly, Coca Cola list their shared company values as 'Leadership, Passion, Integrity, Accountability, Collaboration, Innovation, and Quality' (3). It's hard to see that the present circumstances are helping Coca Cola present their values of leadership, integrity and accountability much. Adidas too will not be particularly happy bunnies this morning – they state on their webpage for Vision and Governance: "But leadership is not only about results, it is also about how success is achieved. We are accountable for the way we do business… We are committed to good governance". Not a great deal of brand synergy going on there at the moment either.
The one thing that can be said of Blatter is that he is a survivor. Allegations that he acted corruptly date back at least to 2002. As Nick Harris reported in The Independent nine years ago: "Sepp Blatter was yesterday accused by 11 senior Fifa colleagues of trying to buy votes to secure his re-election as president of football's world governing body. The dramatic move could end the 66-year-old's long career in the game. In an unprecedented move in Fifa's 98-year history, Blatter became the subject of a formal legal complaint filed in the Swiss courts by five Fifa vice-presidents and six other Fifa executive committee members." (4) Maybe we can't expect too much in the way of sponsorship withdrawal as these allegation haven't stopped them.
Blatter does have an Achilles heel nonetheless. FIFA remains under investigation by Swiss federal authorities (5), as revealed by Matt Scott of The Guardian. The Swiss may be more fussy than Adidas and Coca Cola when it comes to seeing their national 'brand' under threat. Exemption from anti-corruption legislation for FIFA may well be lifted, especially as it applies to 'not for profit' organisations, an increasingly badly-fitting description for a body with reserves of almost three-quarters of a billion pounds (6).
One way or another, we shouldn't expect a swift cleaning of the Augean stables, especially as Blatter is no Hercules.

subset: commoncrawl


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While other phones are going large, Motorola is taking things in a different direction: small and tough.
Motorola Defy
Compact enough to fit in a pocket without causing embarrassing bulges. Surprisingly resistant to liquid immersion. Lightweight. Whaddya know — a smartphone that actually works well for voice calling!
Lightweight plastic body screams "middlebrow," not "sophisticate." Barely enough battery to last through a typical day. Cluttered with widgets you probably won't use (but which are easy enough to delete). One generation behind the most recent Android version.
How We Rate
- 1/10A complete failure in every way
- 2/10Sad, really
- 3/10Serious flaws; proceed with caution
- 4/10Downsides outweigh upsides
- 5/10Recommended with reservations
- 6/10Solid with some issues
- 7/10Very good, but not quite great
- 8/10Excellent, with room to kvetch
- 9/10Nearly flawless
- 10/10Metaphysical perfection
The new Motorola Defy is a compact Android phone that wisely eschews the gigantism of other smartphones. Instead of the HTC Evo's 4.3-inch screen or the Dell Streak's 5-incher (please!), the Defy, which is available now from T-Mobile in the United States, has a cute little 3.6-inch display with 480 x 854 pixels. It's small and pocketable — shorter (but thicker) than an iPhone 4 and it's light, weighing just 4 ounces.
Despite its diminutive size, the Defy goes big in one important area: its resistance to water and grit. The case is water-resistant and the screen is made of scratch-resistant Gorilla Glass, a hardened material found in a few other recent phones. If you've ever dropped your phone in the toilet, spilled a beer on it or pulled it out of your pocket along with half a pound of sand after a day at the beach, you'll understand the appeal of these two features.
There are some caveats. The tiny rubber flaps that cover the headphone jack and the USB port have to be in place. And unlike the makers of watches and other truly waterproof gear, Motorola hasn't published a water-resistance rating, which means they don't actually expect you to dunk it in the toilet. That said, I tested it by pouring a half pint of beer on it, yelling, "Dude, you spilled beer on my phone!" and then washing it off under a vigorously flowing kitchen tap. The Defy suffered no ill effects.
As a phone, it's light, compact and capable. Talk time was a very respectable 5.5 hours, and sound quality seemed excellent for both listener and speaker. T-Mobile offers a Wi-Fi calling option, so you can place your calls using a local hotspot instead of the nearest T-Mobile cell tower. While you still use up your plan's minutes this way, I found it was a great way to get a crystal-clear call even in a weak coverage area.
The Defy comes with the Android skin that Motorola puts on all of its phones, Motoblur. Some people might like the enhancements this offers, such as home-screen widgets that collect tweets and Facebook status updates from your social circle, but I found it mostly useless.
The phone's default text-entry method, a Swype-enhanced virtual keyboard, is worse than useless: It actually slowed me down significantly and nearly caused me to test the phone's impact resistance against a wall. (There's no physical QWERTY in this soapbar-shaped phone.) Switching to the default Android keyboard and removing a handful of Motoblur widgets went a long way toward making me feel better about the phone's interface.
The processor is a relatively speedy 800-MHz TI OMAP 3610, and the phone has 512 MB of RAM plus 2 GB of built-in memory and a 2-GB microSD card (expandable to 32 GB). That's more than enough to handle the phone's basics, plus most apps you're likely to throw at it. There's an FM radio, aGPS, Bluetooth support, DLNA compatibility and a laundry list of other useful features.
Other aspects of the phone weren't as stellar. That small size comes with a price, and that is a screen that may seem cramped, especially for people used to bigger displays. Size also limits the space for a battery, curtailing the phone's useful life: In a day of reasonably steady use, the Defy's battery was nearly dry within about 12 hours.
The camera is, in a word, meh, taking middling pictures despite its 5-megapixel resolution. The LED "flash" is about as bright as a lightning bug, casting a pale glow over subjects a few feet away but useless further out than that.
And the OS is Android 2.1, aka Eclair, which means you don't get tasty FroYo features like built-in tethering — the one feature I was really hoping to get from this little smartphone.
With those limitations in mind, the Defy is a sturdy, unassuming, practical phone that's rugged enough to withstand a night on the town, or a day at the beach, no matter how many beers you down. I'll drink to that.
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40mm Reveal Watch
$140.00 – $165.00
40mm Watches available with either leather or black mesh stainless steel band.See the Working Model
- Video/Animations
- Description
- Additional information
- How to Adjust Your Band
- About Daniel Will-Harris
40mm Reveal Watch
40mm Reveal Watch with Time in the Present!
With the 40mm Reveal Watch, time is always in the present. This timekeeper reveals the current time through a looking glass while fading the past and the future. If you are a person of the present, this watch is made specifically for you. Originally introduced in 2001, The Reveal Watch has never been duplicated. Built with a black IP Case (a process that makes for a hardened black coating to prevent peeling or chipping), The 40mm Reveal Watch is available with either a smooth black leather band or a smooth black silicone band.
Simple and beautiful, the 40mm Reveal Watch has three discs. The first or outer disc shows the hour. With each passing moment the correct time "fades" into view while the older time fades out of view. The center or middle disc displays the minutes in increments of "5" while the center or smallest disc has a small dot indicating the seconds.
This classic minimalist watch becomes even more contemporary in a bigger, bolder size that compliment's the design's unique subtlety. The new 40mm Reveal Watch is available two ways. Both made of stainless steel now you can choose between a black IP plating on stainless steel or a silver color brushed stainless steel.
Reveal celebrates its 13th year with the creation of a newer and larger size. While copied, Reveal has never been duplicated… until now. Available in a 40mm diameter (1.57"), this oversized Reveal is not just a man's watch, but is for anyone who prefers a larger and bolder timepiece. Choose from a Black or STEEL finish and from several different types of bands. Created in 2001, Reveal is tomorrows classic today!
A unique analog watch that reads in a digital format. A true contemporary of time!
For a more complete view of The 40mm Reveal Watch be certain to scroll down a bit to see the working model. The 33mm size Reveal is also available in a oh, so cool blue as well.
Reveal is 40mm in diameter (1.57″) and 8.85mm high (0.35″)
|1 lbs
|Band Color
|Band Material
Leather, Leather + Extra Silicone Band, Metal Mesh, Silicone
About Daniel Will-Harris
MoMA called Will-Harris "a computer graphics pioneer," and his work "truly unique."
Daniel Will-Harris is a computer graphics pioneer who literally wrote the book on computer typography, design and publishing in print and on the web.
He invented the EsperFonto system which created a new paradigm in typeface selection. He has designed award-winning books and book covers for major publishers, visual systems for the entertainment industry and identities for restaurants listed among the top 50 in the country.
He has written and edited seven best-selling books, as well as international design publications. He is currently at work writing and designing his second book of short stories, creating a cutting-edge clothing line called "Under Cover" and a series of of "souvenirs of imaginary places," and acting in independent films.
Show products


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FBI memos paint Jobs as driven, reality-distorting visionary
FBI memos paint Jobs as driven, reality-distorting visionary, Jobs painted as reality-distorting visionary, Steve Jobs alienated colleagues yet commanded respect, according to FBI memos. Apple Inc co-founder Steve Jobs, hailed as one of the greatest technology visionaries of his generation, dabbled in illicit drugs in his youth and alienated colleagues yet commanded universal respect, according to interviews conducted by the FBI in the 1990s.
A series of interviews with friends and associates -- whose names were redacted by the bureau -- painted a familiar picture of a technology visionary who intimidated associates and insisted on getting his way, but whose drive and vision inspired admiration.
The FBI in 1991 began questioning Jobs and associates as the increasingly high-profile CEO of Next Inc began to be considered as a candidate for sensitive, presidential appointments.
Jobs himself admitted in a 1991 interview, days before his wedding, that he had experimented with hashish and LSD in his youth.
According to the FBI, other interviewees called into question his personal integrity and said that he was difficult to work with -- no surprise to those familiar with a life story that emerged over the decades of an intensely private individual.
Yet the majority of those interviewed recommended Jobs as fit for government.
"Several individuals questioned Mr. Jobs' honesty stating that Mr. Jobs will twist the truth and distort reality in order to achieve his goals," the FBI wrote in a summary.
Jobs died in October after a years-long struggle with cancer. He was recognized for his enormous impact on the media, music and technology industries through such innovations as Apple's iPod and iPhone.
via: yahoo


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Nate Silver looks at two polls — the only two, he says — that test Marco Rubio's popularity in the aftermath of the Senate having reached the final stages of passing a comprehensive immigration reform bill. One poll is by Rasmussen; the other by ABC News/Washington Post.
Both find a double-digit drop in Rubio's net favorability rating among Republicans. Rasmussen finds that Rubio's favorability rating with this group dropped from 58 percent to 42 percent between early May and late June of this year. ABC News/Washington Post finds a decline from 43 percent to 25 percent since last August.
The disparity in Rubio's current favorability rating — 42 percent vs. 25 percent — seems odd. The questions posed in the two surveys are similar, though not identical.
Rasmussen asked 1,000 likely voters (so, presumably around 300 Republicans): "Do you have a very favorable, somewhat favorable, somewhat unfavorable or very unfavorable impression of Marco Rubio?" ABC News/Washington Post asked 1,010 adults: "Overall, do you have a favorable or unfavorable impression of Marco Rubio?" The results of that survey cited above are for registered voters.
In addition, the surveys reach disparate results for independent voters. ABC News shows Rubio's favorability rating slipping with this group, while Rasmussen shows it improving.
Still, there's little reason to doubt the finding of both polls that Rubio's standing with Republicans declined considerably as the Schumer-Rubio legislation moved to the brink of Senate passage. Rubio is a good politician, but he's not a magician. Crusading for legislation that most Republicans don't favor was bound to hurt his favorability rating.
It's a long way from now to the 2016 primary season, of course. But it seems to me unlikely that Rubio will recoup much of his lost standing. In fact, if he runs for president, his standing might decline further.
I suspect that many Republicans either aren't fully aware of Rubio's role in pushing for amnesty legislation or do not understand the extent to which his legislation aligns with the liberal position on immigration reform. Rubio has presented ads on Fox News that tout his bill as "conservative" and he has frequently appeared on Fox News programs pushing the same line — largely unchallenged until recently.
But during the primary season, Rubio will be hammered in debates by one or more Schumer-Rubio opponents (perhaps Ted Cruz, for example). Thus, the public discussion of his position will be less weighted in Rubio's favor than it has been this season.
This doesn't mean that Rubio has no shot at the Republican nomination; nor is that my view. But his shot is much longer now than it was half a year ago.


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The lineup, including the preliminary and main cards, is set for next month's "Strikeforce: Tate vs. Rousey" event.
The show takes place March 3 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio.
The main card, including a title fight between female bantamweight champion Miesha Tate (12-2 MMA, 5-1 SF) and Ronda Rousey (4-0 MMA, 2-0 SF), airs on Showtime. Prelims air on Showtime Extreme.
Tate and Rousey join Gina Carano and Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos as the only female headliners of a major Strikeforce card. (Sarah Kuafman and Takayo Hashi also headlined a smaller Strikeforce Challengers card in early 2010.)
Also slated for the event, which is Strikeforce's second in Columbus, are main-card matchups of light heavyweights Mike Kyle (19-8-1 MMA, 3-3-1 SF) vs. Gegard Mousasi (32-3-2 MMA, 3-1-1 SF), lightweights K.J. Noons (11-4 MMA, 3-2 SF) vs. Josh Thomson (18-4 MMA, 9-2 SF), welterweights Paul Daley (29-11-2 MMA, 1-2 SF) vs. Kazuo Misaki (24-11-2 MMA, 1-0 SF), and middleweights Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza (14-3 MMA, 4-1 SF) vs. Derek Brunson (9-0 MMA, 3-0 SF).
Prelims include female bantamweights Alexis Davis (11-4 MMA, 2-0 SF) vs. Sarah Kaufman (14-1 MMA, 5-1 SF), lightweights Caros Fodor (7-1 MMA, 5-0 SF) vs. Pat Healy (26-16 MMA, 4-1 SF), middleweights Scott Smith (17-9 MMA, 3-4 SF) vs. Lumumba Sayers (5-2 MMA, 1-1 SF), and lightweights Conor Heun (9-4 MMA, 1-2 SF) vs. Ryan Couture (3-1 MMA, 3-1 SF).
The full "Strikeforce: Tate vs. Rousey" card now includes:
MAIN CARD (Showtime)
- Champ Miesha Tate vs. Ronda Rousey (for female bantamweight title)
- Mike Kyle vs. Gegard Mousasi
- K.J. Noons vs. Josh Thomson
- Paul Daley vs. Kazuo Misaki
- Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza vs. Derek Brunson
PRELIMINARY CARD (Showtime Extreme)
- Alexis Davis vs. Sarah Kaufman
- Caros Fodor vs. Pat Healy
- Lumumba Sayers vs. Scott Smith
- Conor Heun vs. Ryan Couture
For more on "Strikeforce: Tate vs. Rousey," stay tuned to the MMA Rumors section of the site.
(Pictured: Ronda Rousey)


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Other Structures. 1Then he led me north to the outer court, bringing me to some chambers on the north side opposite the restricted area and the north building.a 2They were a hundred cubits long on the north side and fifty cubits wide. 3Built in rows at three different levels, they stood between the twenty cubits of the inner court and the pavement of the outer court. 4In front of the chambers was a walkway ten cubits wide on the inside of a wall one cubit wide. The doorways faced north. 5* The upper chambers were shorter because they lost space to the lower and middle tiers of the building. 6Because they were in three tiers, they did not have foundations like the court, but were set back from the lower and middle levels from the ground up. 7The outside walls ran parallel to the chambers along the outer court, a length of fifty cubits. 8The chambers facing the outer court were fifty cubits long; thus the wall along the nave was a hundred cubits. 9At the base of these chambers, there was an entryway from the east so that one could enter from the outer court 10where the wall of the court began.
To the south along the side of the restricted area and the building there were also chambers 11with a walkway in front of them. They looked like the chambers on the north side in length and width, in their exits, their design, and their doorways. 12At the base of the chambers on the south side there was an entry at the end of a walkway in front of the protective wall by which one could enter from the east. 13He said to me, "The north and south chambers facing the restricted area are the chambers of the holy place where the priests who approach the LORD shall eat the most holy meals. Here they shall place the most holy offerings: the grain offerings, the purification offerings, and the reparation offerings; for the place is holy.* b 14When the priests have entered, they must not go out again from the holy place into the outer court without leaving the garments in which they ministered because they are holy. They shall put on other garments before approaching the area for the people."c
Measuring the Outer Court. 15When he finished measuring the interior of the temple area, he brought me out by way of the gate facing east and measured all around it. 16He measured the east side, five hundred cubits by his measuring rod. Then he turned 17and measured the north side: five hundred cubits by his measuring rod. He turned 18and measured the south side, five hundred cubits by his measuring rod. 19He turned and measured the west side, also five hundred cubits by his measuring rod. 20Thus he measured it on the four sides. It was surrounded by a wall five hundred cubits long and five hundred cubits wide, to separate the sacred from the profane.
* [42:5–6] The three rows of identical chambers, on different ground levels, necessarily had roofs on correspondingly different levels.
* [42:13] The function of these chambers is explained again in 46:19–20.
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A sad day in Pan with the passing of Dr. Elliot Mannette the "Father of the Modern Steel Pan." Born November 5, 1927, in Trinidad, Dr. Mannette dedicate his life to the steel pan art form. He was awarded numerous times for his craft and his work in educating generations about Pan. A true global […]


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Procedures and Forms
Undergraduate | Graduate | Doctoral
The forms below are PDF files. Adobe Reader required. (Download the free Adobe Reader.)
For Murray State employees
- W-4 Federal Income Tax Deduction Form
- K-4 Kentucky Income Tax Deduction Form
- Stop Payment Form
- Late Time Sheet Request Form
- Time Sheet Correction Form
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Welcome to The Pheasant, the award-winning country pub, restaurant and hotel on the Essex/Suffolk border.
Open for Dinner, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday &Saturday 6.30pm -9.00pm
Please ring 01787 465010 to book your table
The Pheasant at Gestingthorpe AA Pub of the Year for England 2014/15. The winners of this prestigious award stand out as truly excellent all-round pubs or inns. They successfully combine the provision of enjoyable food, comfortable accommodation, a great pub atmosphere and a warm welcome with a high standard of management.
Guests arriving for a refreshing drink, delicious dinner, or peaceful overnight stay in our pub with rooms soon see that comfort and quality are served as standard. We have created a warm and inviting restaurant, serving freshly prepared, locally sourced regional food. Comfortable chairs, beautiful oak tables and an open fire create an intimate and friendly atmosphere. We want our guests to know where they are in the country, and what time of year it is when it comes to our menu.
Recommended in The Michelin Guide to Eating out in Pubs 2017 and The Waitrose Good Food Guide 2018
Nestled on the Essex/Suffolk border, with views over the surrounding countryside, The Pheasant country pub has a boutique hotel, inspired by historical local icons. The hotel rooms are named after local notable people to celebrate East Anglia?s heritage and figures such as Thomas Gainsborough, John Constable are well known but we also wanted to celebrate lesser known people who have strong connections to the area such as Mark Catesby, Samuel Courtauld and Capt Lawrence Oates.
Please take a look around our site and feel free to call on 01787 465010, if you need any further information. We look forward to welcoming you at The Pheasant soon!


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Saturday, May 02, 2009
Energy Crisis
The past year I have been eating a low calorie diet consisting mainly of lean protein and veggies with a fruit added in once a day. I had cut out the oats most mornings as well. In hindsight, not such a great idea.
My sessions in the gym have been great but the long runs, not so much. Think of trying to run through a Saran Wrap wall. That is how many of my long runs have felt, as they have for quite some time, but I've just become used to it.
After renewing my contacts at Precision Nutrition and speaking with many of professionals there I have come to the decision that enough is enough..I began to add in the 1/2 cups of oats along with my egg whites each morning, post treadmill run. I've increased my total calories by a few hundred each day, including the oats and making up the rest with a nutritional post workout (2nd workout) shake with protein and carbohydrates.
I am about ready to say "uncle" on training for long distances and a bodybuilding competition simultaneously. I am +almost+ beginning to see why I know of zero ultrarunners who body build as well. The two sports may in fact be conflicting (duh) but I had to give it a try and will continue to do so..for a while. Until I do say uncle.
The thought of being a newbie on the bodybuilding scene is so exciting, I love to learn something that I really know nothing about. Not that I know everything about ultrarunning; I certainly do not, but it is something that I have practiced for quite some time.
Of course the scale hasn't been kind but I just can't worry about that now. I'm eating healthy foods: lean proteins, healthy fats, fruits and vegetables, and am practicing nutritional bracketing and timed carbohydrates, total calories just below my energy needs. My workouts finally felt good today as I ran a faster 15 miles on road at 4AM with Topaz before clean up day duties. I'll hit the gym after Grand March for Prom this afternoon.
I have probably really messed with my hormones and biochemistry this past year and I imagine my body thinks I have been starving it. All I can do now is try to get it going again with eating more energy which will hopefully result in iron blasting muscle growing workouts and good long runs again. We'll see. A work in progress :)
5 comments:
- keith said...
I am astounded that you could even train for both events simultaneously. I think I would have had an aneurysm a long time ago if I was doing what you're doing.
You're amazing.
I am working on this myself and you are on the right track for sure! Extreme dieting does not happy hormones make.
I am too trying to merge keeping some muscle and strength while enjoying long miles. I've been doing CrossFit for the past 6 months. Check it out, especially crossfitendurance.com where they outline their concepts. I don't have a local CrossFit, but use their concepts all the time.
- runclimbswim said...
Julie, It's Kevin from LL - I've seen BBs doing IMs, but they do tend to slow down pretty quickly. I think the extra weight and different training, whether it's good or bad, gets in the way after a few dozen miles under your own power.
And - I can confirm your Foot Potion has been used in the Boston Marathon. I got through with no blisters (that's two in a row) and no other issues from clothing rubbing me the wrong way. That stuff is GREAT!
Julie-I have wanted to ask-do you try any of the delicious looking things that you bake? and also as someone who runs and is trying to lose weight-do you add calories to your daily total on days you run more?


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The United Nations Foundation Partners with The Millennial Trains Project to Support Civic-Minded Young Entrepreneurs
Inaugural Transcontinental Journey Across America Starts August 8th
August 6, 2013
Megan Rabbitt
The United Nations Foundation today announced a new partnership with The Millennial Trains Project (MTP) to promote social change during a transcontinental train trek across America.
Founded in 2012, MTP leads transcontinental train journeys that empower enterprising and civic-minded Millennials, aged 18 to 34, to advance new ideas and implement projects that serve and benefit local communities. The inaugural train journey across America departs San Francisco on August 8th, with stops in Salt Lake City, Denver, Omaha, Chicago, and Pittsburgh before arriving in Washington, D.C. on August 17th.
"From mobile health technologies to micro-credit, civic-minded entrepreneurs continuously find innovative solutions to address the world's toughest problems," said Elizabeth Gore, Resident Entrepreneur, the United Nations Foundation. "By partnering with The Millennial Trains Project, the Foundation can further connect people, ideas, and resources to solve global problems."
"At the core of The Millennial Trains Project is the idea that journeys build leaders. Every culture has myths about this, and so do we. By incorporating trains into the project, we're tapping back into this idea of the pioneering spirit that built our country," said Patrick Dowd, CEO and founder of The Millennial Trains Project. "My hope is that people who learn about the project and follow the journey along the way will begin to see a picture of the leadership, diversity, creativity, and enterprising nature of this rising generation."
At each stop, the maiden group of travelers will showcase their innovative ideas and entrepreneurial projects, while engaging with local entrepreneurs, residents and community leaders. The innovative solutions they explore will address issues including reproductive health for young women, renewable energy technologies, and improving access to higher education, among others.
Between stops, travelers will take part in a host of networking and program events. The UN Foundation will share with the group our work helping the United Nations engage global citizens on the development of the next millennium development goals, including MY World, a United Nations global survey for citizens.
En route to the nation's capital, the entrepreneurs will be joined by on-train mentors from the public and private sectors. More information on the mentors, entrepreneurs and their schedule can be found at www.millennialtrain.co/journey.
Follow the journey and join the conversation with hashtag "#NewFrontiers."
Tweet this: The @unfoundation is partnering w/ The @MillennialTrain Project to help #entrepreneurs & #millennials promote social change across America
# # #
About The United Nations Foundation
The United Nations Foundation builds public-private partnerships to address the world's most pressing problems, and broadens support for the United Nations through advocacy and public outreach. Through innovative campaigns and initiatives, the Foundation connects people, ideas, and resources to help the UN solve global problems. The Foundation was created in 1998 as a U.S. public charity by entrepreneur and philanthropist Ted Turner and now is supported by global corporations, foundations, governments, and individuals. For more information, visit www.unfoundation.org.
About The Millennial Trains Project
The Millennial Trains Project (MTP) is a non-profit organization that leads crowdfunded transcontinental train journeys to empower diverse groups of Millennials to explore America's new frontiers. Over the course of a ten day train journey, MTP helps participants and virtual audiences to identify, evaluate, and explore new opportunities and challenges in the communities where our trains stop – and advance a project that benefits, serves, and inspires others. The inspiration for MTP comes from a similar train journey, the Jagriti Yatra, that founder Patrick Dowd helped lead as a 2010-11 Fulbright Scholar in India. Follow the Millennial Trains Project across the nation this August by visiting www.millennialtrain.co, Twitter and Facebook


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InternetNZ (Internet New Zealand Inc) today calls for a wider discussion on how to secure the Ultra Fast Broadband (UFB) rollout given recent controversy around copper broadband pricing issues.
Late last year, the Commerce Commission issued a draft determination that would reduce the price that wholesaler Chorus could charge for copper. Subsequently, the Prime Minister made comments linking the cuts to price with the implications it might have on the financial viability of the UFB rollout.
Fibre broadband is more expensive than copper and the Government and Chorus are concerned that reducing the copper price could stymie the uptake of fibre.
InternetNZ Spokesperson Susan Chalmers says the copper / fibre conundrum is one of the most challenging telecommunications regulatory issues ever to face the country.
"The problem lies in rolling out a $5bn fibre network with only $1.5bn available. In addition, that fibre network must compete with a legacy copper network that is already cheaper than its faster counterpart. The December 2012 decisions would make copper even cheaper" she says.
"The reason for the price drop is the legislative requirement to base copper broadband prices on their costs. This was passed into law in 2011 as part of the deal separating Telecom and Chorus. It always pointed to lower copper prices.
"An open acknowledgement of the challenge that low copper prices causes for UFB has now happened: Chorus could not have been clearer. The question now is what comes next? Given the alleged contradiction between low copper prices and successful UFB rollout, what is to be done?
"InternetNZ has always supported open policy processes. When the UFB deal was put together, of necessity it had to be under conditions of commercial secrecy and confidentiality. This, inevitably, meant a lack of consultation and industry engagement. Now we are beyond that period. It is time for an open debate. The UFB is a critical investment in New Zealand's future. The Government, industry and consumers need to test the truth of Chorus's claims that cost-based copper prices put the UFB at risk. All parties need to share their ideas about how to make the UFB work," says Chalmers.
"InternetNZ is willing to assist with convening a roundtable discussion that takes a fresh look at the issues, if that would be helpful. We will write to ICT Minister Amy Adams today proposing such a discussion," she says.
"InternetNZ appreciates the complexity of the problem. Chorus' desire to retain a high copper price is one possible solution, but only 75 percent of the country will benefit from fibre. The remaining 25 percent will be left paying higher copper prices than they otherwise would have.
"InternetNZ wants the UFB rollout to succeed. We are not convinced that basing copper prices on cost precludes that outcome. Chorus obviously takes a different view. A discussion is therefore required.
"Whatever comes next, New Zealand needs to protect the independence of the Commerce Commission as independent regulator of the industry. The Commission didn't create this problem – it is simply applying the law. The debate about how to make UFB work has to be had, and the evidence behind Chorus's claims that cost-based copper prices undermine the UFB needs to be aired – and tested – in public," says Chalmers.


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Current Theme Song (aka what's playing on my ipod right now): Don't Stop Believing by Journey.
Since I'm a sneaky little twerp, here is the letter to Beth Revis's contest for behind the scenes goodies and the much coveted ARC of Across the Universe. This is in case you didn't guess it or (like me) need a confirmation it's the right letter (I kept counting on my fingers all morning to make sure it was the right clue I was giving you).
The letter clue is:
That's an important one. It may tip the scale for many of you. And I've just seen that the last letter is up. So go crack that password! :)


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the twit reads the news
June 14, 2008 Leave a comment
by twit
whoops: Those levees they had thought would hold the Des Moines river back have breached. Total evacuation has been ordered and is well underway in affected areas due to the coordinated efforts of the earlier voluntary evacuations and the police going door-to-door before dawn to wake and assist the people still there. The BBC has video from Cedar Rapids.
damn: Tim Russert is dead. Long live Tim Russert:
What we hope to do in this campaign is recognize there are big differences on big issues between John McCain and Barack Obama – the war in Iraq, Iran, Social Security, taxes. You don't need to get into this other stuff. If it does surface, then I think the mainstream media has an obligation not to just instinctively put it out there without vetting it.
wow: Protests in Tibet continue, including a report about a monk using a sword to defend himself from officials attempting his arrest and then managing to escape into the mountains before 200 Chinese officers arrived.


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The finding, reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, draws on data from studies that have tracked the health of tens of thousands of people over several decades. It suggests that colorectal cancer patients could one day have their tumor tissue tested for the molecular sign, and, if necessary, receive more powerful therapies and a familial cancer-risk assessment for their relatives. It further suggests that such patients' relatives could be eligible for more frequent colonoscopies to catch the disease at the earliest possible stage.
Unlike other abnormalities that raise the risk of colon cancer in some families, the newly discovered sign is not linked to a gene mutation that can be inherited from one's parents or grandparents. It appears in DNA segments that are thought to have entered the human genome millennia ago, possibly through infection by retroviruses. These sections, known as long interspersed nucleotide element 1 (LINE-1), are sprinkled throughout the human genome and make up about 17 percent of our DNA. Normally, LINE-1 doesn't cause much trouble, because it's blanketed by methyl groups (packets of one carbon atom bound to three hydrogen atoms).
In the current study, researchers led by Dana-Farber's Shuji Ogino, MD, PhD, MS, and Charles Fuchs, MD, MPH, found that for many colorectal cancer patients with a family history of the disease, the LINE-1 in their tumor cells was nearly bare of methyl groups (a condition known as hypomethylation).
"Previous studies have suggested that some colorectal cancers exhibit an instability of the epigenome, the cell's system for controlling when genes are active," says Ogino, the paper's first author. "One of the signs of this deficiency, it was proposed, is hypomethylation of LINE-1. We wanted to find whether a family history of colorectal cancer creates a higher risk of such hypomethylation."
Fuchs is the paper's senior author.
In contrast to a small, previous study, which suggested that LINE-1 hypomethylated colorectal cancers cluster in certain families, the new study took a large-scale "prospective" approach to gain more definitive insights. Investigators used data from the Nurses' Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-up Study – which follow the health of tens of thousands of people for decades – to see if participants who had a family history of colorectal cancer tended to develop colorectal cancer with low-level methylation of LINE-1.
"We found that, compared to individuals without a family history of colorectal cancer, people who had first-degree relatives affected with the disease indeed had a higher risk of developing colorectal cancer with hypomethylated LINE-1," Ogino says. "Because this variety of colorectal cancer can quickly become dangerous, testing colorectal cancer patients for tumor LINE-1 hypomethylation may offer a valuable way of identifying those in greatest need of aggressive treatment. Such testing could also help identify patients whose relatives may be at increased risk for the aggressive form of the disease. Further study is needed to determine how this type of testing can be used in a clinical setting."
In addition to Ogino and Fuchs, the paper's co-authors are Reiko Nishihara, PhD, Paul Lochhead, MBChB, MRCP, Yu Imamura, MD, PhD, Aya Kuchiba, PhD, Teppei Morikawa, MD, PhD, Mai Yamauchi, PhD, Xiaoyun Liao, MD, PhD, Zhi Rong Qian, MD, PhD, Ruifang Sun, MB, Kaori Sato, MS, and Jeffrey Meyerhardt, MD, MPH, of Dana-Farber; Molin Wang, PhD, Donna Spiegelman, ScD, Eva S. Schernhammer, MD, DrPH, and Edward Giovannucci, MD, ScD, of the Harvard School of Public Health and BWH; Andrew T. Chan, MD, MPH, of BWH and Massachusetts General Hospital; and Gregory J. Kirkner, MPH, of BWH.
The study was funded in part by the National Institutes of Health (P01 CA87969, P01 CA55075, P50 CA127003, R01 CA151993, and R01 CA137178), the Bennett Family Fund for Targeted Therapies Research, and the National Colorectal Cancer Research Alliance.


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The Stevens-Coolidge Place (more) of North Andover, Massachusetts is rather close to where I live. My husband and I made our first visit there recently. The estate grounds, 91 acres, were free and open for all to visit. Bring a lunch and you can eat on the grounds. A special treat was seeing the rose garden, of which I limited myself to showing only two rose photos.
From Wikipedia is this description, "The Stevens-Coolidge Place 91 acres, formerly known as Ashdale Farm, is a garden and historic home located at 139 Andover Street in North Andover, Massachusetts. Helen Stevens Coolidge's family first acquired the farm in 1729, and from 1914-1962 it was her summer home with husband John Gardner Coolidge, diplomat, descendant of Thomas Jefferson, and nephew of Isabella Stewart Gardner. It is now a nonprofit museum operated by The Trustees of Reservations.
Between 1914 and 1918, architect Joseph Everett Chandler remodeled two late-Federal period farmhouses to form today's house. Chandler also enhanced the design of the landscape, which eventually included a perennial garden, a kitchen and cut flower garden, a rose garden, a French potager garden with a brick serpentine wall, and a greenhouse complex. The house's collections include Asian artifacts including Chinese porcelain, American furniture, and European decorative arts."


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Here is the PDF preview of the notebook.Click at the red tile. Let me describe what I have found.
First, I had to figure out the right URLs of the HTML pages that contain the tables in an importable enough format, import them with some sensible formatting options to Mathematica so that they quickly become an array, and replace decimal commas by decimal points.
When we're done, we have the temperature for each of the 12 months of each of the 52 years for each of the 1+13 regions of the Czech Republic. Just to be sure, Czechia has 14 administrative regions (the division was different in the era of communism and it's not one of the things in which I considered communism to be worse: I don't really care) but in this dataset, Prague is unified with the Central Bohemian region that surrounds the capital which means that we only have 13 "weather regions" but they're sometimes supplemented by the new 14th region (put at the beginning) which is the whole country.
Well, your humble correspondent rewrote the names of the regions with the right character set and diacritics. It still displayed incorrectly in the PDF and most readers can't read Czech, anyway. ;-)
Now, I have checked the consistency of the data – the web pages show the actual monthly temperature for each month/year/region combination, the normal temperature for this month/region combination (that should be independent of the year), and their difference, the temperature anomaly.
The "normal temperatures" were listed identically almost everywhere. The only mistake appeared in January 1961 (the first year) for the Southern Bohemian region which says +2.8 although all other years agree it should be –2.8 – all these numbers are in Celsius degrees. So I suppose +2.8 is a typo which also makes the anomaly for that single month/region combination incorrect.
Then I verified whether their anomalies are really equal to the differences of the actual temperatures and the the normal temperatures. It turned out to be exact almost everywhere. However, there were 49 month/year/region combinations where the difference was plus or minus 0.1 Celsius degree, probably due to rounding. Curiously enough, all these mismatches (a tiny minority of month/year/region combinations: such rounding errors should have occurred in 1/2 of the data i.e. in thousands of combinations if the algorithm capable of producing rounding errors were used everywhere) appeared in the years 1974, 1981, 2003, 2005, and 2012. One may see some inconsistency in the rounding schemes – it was probably done by different people or at different moments for different years.
At any rate, the actual temperatures seem trustworthy enough. I haven't verified whether the tables did the correct averaging over the years and the correct averaging over the 13 weather regions – some new rounding issues could be found and discussed here as well, I guess.
So I calculated my own normal temperatures. For each region, they're a pretty nice sine that goes from –4 through –2 °C in January to +15 through +18 °C in July. You may see that the differences between the regions are slightly larger in the spring and the summer than they are in the fall or the winter.
The maximum temperature anomaly for a month/year/region combination was 6.3 degrees. The root mean square anomaly was 1.93 °C. Yes, if you average the temperature over a month, they give you a pretty nice Gaussian centered at the "normal temperature" whose standard deviation is almost two degrees. That's true in the Czech Republic. The numbers may differ in your country or region. The fluctuations are likely to be smaller near the sea and larger deep inside the continents.
When I divided the anomalies to individual years, the histograms were much less Gaussian and more "noisy". In different years, the root mean square anomaly went from 1.2 to 3.0 °C or so. When I divided the anomalies to the 13 or 14 individual regions, the Gaussians were a bit smoother and all the root mean square values of the anomalies were between 1.85 and 2.05 °C.
Now, the trends. Note that when we calculate the trends, the year variable "drops out" because it's already been used to calculate the trend. So we only have at most 12*14 = 168 month/region combinations for which the trend may be computed. The mean trend is 2.8 °C per century – Czechia has obviously seen a faster rate than the globe – the latter had close to 1 °C in the last 50 years. The histogram is somewhat noisy and almost all the entries show a trend between 0 °C and 6°C.
When the trends are divided to the individual 14 regions, they are all between 2.45 and 3.15 °C per century – we still have the degeneracy over the months. All these differences between the regions may be described as noise.
However, a shocking and a kind of curious observation is that the temperature trend vastly depends on the month – from January to December – if all the regions are clumped. It changes in a zig-zag way. The trend for Octobers is close to 0.2 °C per century, virtually zero, while the trend for Mays and Augusts exceeds 4.3 °C per century.
Do you have an explanation for this zigzag behavior?
A possible explanation you may suggest is that due to leap years, Januaries of different years are "different parts of the year", and similarly for the other 11 months. However, this explanation seems to produce far too weak an effect. At most, the shift of a month is by half a day in one way or another. Seasonally, half a day only makes 0.1 °C of a difference and a vast majority of these effects gets averaged out, anyway, because among the 52 years, some of them will have excesses and some of them won't.
So we are forced to conclude that there's been no climate change in Octobers, almost no climate change in Septembers, and a negligible climate change in Februaries. ;-) Does a similar pattern exist at other places? Do you have an explanation of this strong dependence on the month?
One more hint: it could have something to do with other drivers such as aerosols. Maybe the no-trend months – October, September, February – are the worst smog months and smog has contributed a negative amount to the warming trend which only seems to operate when there's actually smog? Do you have a better idea? What should be the differences expected from a sensible statistical/weather model you would think of?


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Twista Lime, Kauai Kolada, Caribbean Chill, Mintrigue. Exotic cigarette flavors like those were banned in 2009 out of concern they might tempt young people.
But the flavors tobacco companies once sold look like plain vanilla compared with the flavor buffet now on offer — legally — by the fast-growing electronic cigarette industry.
News on Tuesday that Reynolds American had agreed to buy Lorillard, uniting two of the nation's biggest tobacco companies, highlighted how important e-cigarettes have become to the declining tobacco industry. Both Reynolds and Lorillard have pushed hard into e-cigarettes, which offer a new way of delivering a puff of nicotine.
For now, those companies' flavors are relatively modest, though they may feel pressure to expand into the explosion of competition for the consumer palate, with e-cigarette flavors such as banana cream pie and cotton candy.
Across the e-cigarette industry, more than 7,000 flavors are now available and, by one estimate, nearly 250 more are being introduced every month. The array of tastes goes far beyond anything cigarette companies ever tried.
Flavors have become central to the conversation because e-cigarette makers say that the rainbow of tastes differentiates them from deadly cigarettes.
But the claim that e-cigarette flavors won't attract children has prompted an outcry from some policy makers, who say consumers have been down this road before with tobacco. Federal health authorities have outlawed most cigarette flavorings except menthol, arguing that they lure the young into nicotine addiction. While the Food and Drug Administration has proposed regulations for e-cigarettes, it has not limited marketing or flavors, which the agency is studying.
At a Senate committee hearing in late June, lawmakers denounced manufacturers for marketing practices that they said appealed to children, including the embrace of flavors that are forbidden in ordinary cigarettes.
"I'm ashamed of you," Senator Jay Rockefeller, Democrat of West Virginia, told several executives. "You're what's wrong with this country."
Jason Healy, the president of Blu eCigs, told the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation that the average age of people using cherry flavored e-cigarettes, for example, was 40. Such flavors "decrease the ability or possibility of adult users who use e-cigs switching back" to cigarettes, he said. Blu eCigs, a subsidiary of Lorillard, is being sold to the British company Imperial as part of the deal announced on Tuesday. Lorillard and Reynolds said they would focus their e-cigarette efforts on Reynolds' product Vuse, which in June was introduced in 15,000 stores nationwide.
For now, Vuse has only two flavors, original cigarette flavor and menthol, but the market is changing quickly as evidenced by the experience of other leading e-cigarette companies. Most notable is the experience of NJOY, which has turned to flavors to help stanch plummeting market share.
Ten months ago, NJOY's chief executive, Craig Weiss, said in an interview that other manufacturers used flavorings "to attract children." NJOY, he said then, was avoiding candy- and fruit-like flavorings, in part because "they drive regulators crazy."
NJOY's investors include Sean Parker, the Napster co-founder and former president of Facebook, and Bruno Mars, the pop star.
But NJOY's share of the convenience store market has gone into free fall, dropping more than half in the last year to less than 10 percent, according to Wells Fargo Securities. Consumer surveys suggest that most people who use e-cigarettes — including those who have smoked — tend to prefer flavors other than tobacco. In the next few weeks, NJOY plans to expand into flavors like "Butter Crumble" and "Black and Blue Berry." Mr. Weiss said in an interview that the company had little choice after focus groups showed that flavors were "critical."
"Flavor is essential to vapers' satisfaction," Mr. Weiss said. He added that research funded by his company showed that flavors "provide no additional appeal to youth."
The e-cigarette market is rapidly shifting, and flavors are central to that. Viking Vapor, one of hundreds of websites selling e-cigarettes, offers 13 pages of alphabetized flavors, from Apple to Watermelon Menthol. But the market for disposable e-cigarettes, commonly found in convenience stores and sold by the likes of NJOY, Vuse and Blu eCigs, appears to be slowing — consumers seemed to be switching to more powerful devices, analysts said. According to Wells Fargo, consumer sales of e-cigarettes at convenience stores fell 17 percent in the month that ended June 7, after falling 10 percent the month earlier — the first time since e-cigarettes came onto the market that consumers spent less at convenience stores. Wells Fargo hypothesized that sales were gravitating to the Internet and "vape" stores, where figures are harder to measure.
Some in public health circles see the debate over flavorings as a sideshow. The central question, they say, is whether e-cigarettes are effective tools to get people to stop smoking tobacco. Others say the issue of flavors crystallizes the debate about the risks and benefits of these products, which many consider far safer than conventional cigarettes. At the same time, there is widespread concern that use of e-cigarettes will renormalize the act of smoking and invite in a new generation of participants, particularly through the lure of flavors.
"It defies logic to think that such flavors would not make e-cigarette use more appealing and even normal for children," said James Pankow, a chemistry professor at Portland State University in Oregon, who has studied cancer risk from cigarettes.
Mr. Weiss of NJOY, hoping to address personal concerns about flavors, funded a study this year to see if the company's new flavors would appeal to young nonsmokers. The study, an online survey conducted by Saul Shiffman, a pharmaceutical industry consultant and psychology professor at the University of Pittsburgh, found that young people were not particularly attracted to the flavors. Flavors did make e-cigarettes more attractive to adult smokers, Professor Shiffman concluded.
Senator Richard J. Durbin, an Illinois Democrat who has called for e-cigarettes to be regulated like conventional cigarettes, said that those results came as no surprise given that NJOY paid for the research.
"Let me be as dismissive as possible: When they start talking about their own research, I say 'been there, done that,' " Mr. Durbin said in an interview. "We listened to those tobacco companies for decades while their so-called experts tried to divert our attention from the obvious."
Mr. Weiss said NJOY did not influence the findings. "I get the appearance of a — 'quote-un-quote' — industry funded study," he said. "But we didn't have time to get it funded by a third party."
In reality, the study took only a few weeks, Mr. Shiffman said, allowing for the possibility that other studies could be done quickly by independent sources. Asked about that prospect, Mr. Weiss said: "What's the magic number of studies? Two studies? Four studies?"
About a year ago, NJOY, based in Scottsdale, Ariz., named to its board Dr. Richard H. Carmona, the former surgeon general who had been an ardent foe of tobacco companies. Before joining the NJOY board, Dr. Carmona said he asked the company about the use of flavors and was told it "was not on the table at that time."
Dr. Carmona, who also works at a nonprofit health organization, the Canyon Ranch Institute, said that NJOY's research was a good start but that it was critical that independent researchers validate the findings. Like Mr. Weiss, Dr. Carmona said he was willing to take the chance and go forward, given that e-cigarettes have the potential to get people to stop smoking conventional cigarettes.
"Research like that could take months or years," Dr. Carmona said. "So we go with a theory, we go with a hypothesis. It's no different than any other market."