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Gulfstream Aerospace

Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation is an American aircraft company and a subsidiary of General Dynamics. Gulfstream designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and services business jet aircraft. Gulfstream has produced more than 2,000 aircraft since 1958. Gulfstream's current range consists of the G280, G400, G500/G600, and G650/G650ER/G700/G800.

Origins
The company that evolved into Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. started in the late 1950s when Grumman Aircraft Engineering Co., known for military aircraft production, developed a twin turboprop business aircraft at its facilities in Bethpage, New York, called the Grumman Gulfstream I (G-I). The G-I could seat 12 passengers, had a maximum speed of 350 mph at 25000 ft and a range of 2,200 mi. The new aircraft, the first of its kind designed for business travel, was a success, prompting Grumman to develop the jet-powered Grumman Gulfstream II or GII.

1960s
At the start of the GII program, Grumman officials separated the company's civil and military aircraft production to improve efficiency. In 1966, they relocated the civilian component to Savannah, Georgia where they had found a supply of skilled labor, an airfield adjacent to the plant and room for expansion. Transportation facilities suitable for heavy equipment and machinery as well as weather favorable to year-round flight-testing and flight-training operations enhanced Savannah's appeal. The new building opened in June 1967 and was dedicated on September 29, 1967. It housed production and flight testing for the GII. The 100-person work force that built the GII was 90% local, and grew to over 1,700 within a few years.

1970s
On January 2, 1973, Grumman merged its civil aircraft operations with light-aircraft manufacturer American Aviation Corporation. The 256th and final GII delivery took place in 1977. One year later, the Gulfstream line and the Savannah plant were sold to American Jet Industries, which was headed by entrepreneur Allen Paulson. Paulson became the president and CEO of the company, renaming it Gulfstream American. He made a priority of developing the Gulfstream III. The GIII was a new aircraft designed to achieve greater range and speed than the GII. The GIII made its first flight in December 1979, with the first delivery in 1980. It was the first business jet designed to fly over both poles. The Hustler 400 was a corporate aircraft that featured a propeller in front for short runway use, and a jet in back for high-altitude cruising. The prototype, designated Hustler 400, first flew on January 11, 1978, but never entered production.

1980s
In 1981, Gulfstream introduced the Gulfstream GIIB. The GIIB had a modified GII fuselage and the GIII wings, complete with winglets. The variant offered weight and performance characteristics similar to the GIII, but with the shorter GII fuselage. Gulfstream completed and delivered approximately 40 GIIBs.

Under Paulson the Savannah work force grew to 2,500 by the spring of 1982. Also in this year, the company's name changed to Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation to reflect its worldwide scope, and a new plane, the Gulfstream IV, was conceived. The following year, Gulfstream offered 8.8 million shares of stock to the public. In 1985, Chrysler Corp. acquired Gulfstream for $637 million as part of the automaker's plan to diversify into high-tech industries. This was also the year that Gulfstream first appeared on the Fortune 500 list, at No. 417. Two years later, the 200th and last Gulfstream III was delivered, and the first delivery of a Gulfstream IV took place. The GIV was the first jet in business aviation to have an all-glass cockpit. In 1989 Chrysler decided to sell Gulfstream, and Paulson teamed with Forstmann Little & Co. – a private equity firm specializing in leveraged buyouts – and bought Gulfstream back.

1990s
The decade that followed the 1989 repurchase was a time of significant advancements for Gulfstream. The company signed a five-year contract with NetJets in 1994. It completed the Gulfstream V Integration Test Facility and rolled out the GV – the first ultra-long range business jet – in 1995. The opening of a $16 million Savannah service center with 136000 sqft of hangar space followed in 1996. In 1997, Gulfstream began the simultaneous manufacture of two aircraft models – the GIV-SP and the GV. Within a few months of the GV's first delivery in June 1997, it set nearly 40 city-pair and/or speed and distance records, and its development team was awarded the 1997 Robert J. Collier Trophy, the highest honor in aeronautics or astronautics in North America. In 1998, Gulfstream purchased K-C Aviation from Kimberly-Clark Corp. for $250 million, which had operations in Dallas, Appleton, Wisconsin, and Westfield, Massachusetts.

2000s
In 1999, General Dynamics purchased Gulfstream, and it opened a $5.5 million aircraft refurbishment and completions support facility in Savannah in 2000. In 2001, it acquired Galaxy Aerospace and with it, the mid-size Astra SPX and super mid-size Galaxy, which were later rebranded the Gulfstream G100 and Gulfstream G200, respectively. Also in 2001, Gulfstream purchased four U.S. maintenance facilities in Dallas, Las Vegas, Minneapolis, and West Palm Beach, Florida. Those service centers, along with a Gulfstream facility in Westfield, Massachusetts, formed General Dynamics Aviation Services, which maintained and repaired Gulfstream and other business-jet aircraft.

In 2002, Gulfstream renamed its products, using Arabic numerals instead of Roman numerals to differentiate its aircraft. At the time, the company's lineup included the ultra long-range Gulfstream G550 and G500, the long-range Gulfstream G400, the mid-range Gulfstream G300 and G200, and the high-speed G100. 2002 was also the year that Gulfstream introduced its Airborne Product Support aircraft, a specially equipped G100 used to deliver parts and provide any-time service to Gulfstream customers under warranty in North America and the Caribbean.

In 2003, Gulfstream acquired a service center at the London-Luton Airport, the first Gulfstream-owned service center to be operated outside the United States. Also, in 2003, the long-range Gulfstream G450 was introduced. The large-cabin, mid-range G350 was presented a year later. In 2004, Gulfstream was awarded the 2003 Collier Trophy for the development of the G550. It was the second time in less than a decade that Gulfstream had won the award. The G550 is the first civil aircraft to receive a Type Certificate issued by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that includes an Enhanced Vision System (EVS) as standard equipment on an aircraft. The aircraft also contained the first cockpit to incorporate PlaneView®, an integrated avionics suite featuring four 14-inch (36 cm) liquid crystal displays in landscape format.

In 2005, Gulfstream began to offer an in-flight internet connection – its Broad Band Multi-Link (BBML) system. Gulfstream also designed and developed a means of reducing the sonic boom caused by an aircraft "breaking" the sound barrier – the Quiet Spike. The Quiet Spike is a telescopic nose device that softens the effect of the sonic boom by smoothing the pressure wave created by flying at the speed of sound. Gulfstream views lifting the current US supersonic ban as essential for a viable business case for supersonic aircraft. In 2006, the 12-year production run of the G100 ended, and the Gulfstream G150 entered service to take its place. The G150 was the first business jet to be certified by the FAA for Stage 4, the industry's most stringent noise standards. Also in 2006, Gulfstream announced plans to expand its manufacturing and service facilities in Savannah. The seven-year, $400 million Long-Range Facilities Master Plan included the creation of a new 624,588 sqft service center, an independent fuel farm, a 42600 sqft paint hangar and the addition of a new Sales and Design Center. As a result of the expansion, employment at the facility was expected to grow by some 1,100 jobs. To meet the immediate need for engineering office space, Gulfstream opened a Research and Development Center (RDC). The RDC accommodates approximately 750 technical and engineering employees.

In April 2007 Gulfstream broke ground for a new business-jet manufacturing building at its headquarters in Savannah. The following month, the company signed a nine-year lease with North Point Real Estate for a second Research and Development Center. The RDC II consists of an office building, which can accommodate 550 employees, and a laboratory building, which is designed for 150 employees and test equipment used in Gulfstream's research and development work. Gulfstream completed the new Sales and Design Center addition in June and officially opened the first phase of the new Savannah Service Center in August.

In 2007, Gulfstream tested its Synthetic Vision-Primary Flight Display (SV-PFD) and EVS II together for the first time. The SV-PFD is an enhancement to the Gulfstream PlaneView flight displays. It features a three-dimensional color image of terrain overlaid with the primary flight display instrument symbology, which are arranged on the screen to create a large-view area for terrain. By early 2008, the FAA had certified both EVS II and SV-PFD.

On March 13, 2008, Gulfstream announced the introduction of a new business jet: the Gulfstream G650. The G650 offers the longest range, fastest speed, largest cabin and most advanced cockpit in the Gulfstream fleet. It is capable of traveling 7000 nmi at Mach 0.85 or will cover shorter distances at Mach 0.925, making it the fastest civilian aircraft flying at the time. It can climb to 51000 ft, allowing it to avoid airline-traffic congestion and adverse weather.

On October 5 of the same year, Gulfstream announced another addition to its business-jet fleet: the large-cabin, mid-range Gulfstream G250 (later renamed the Gulfstream G280). It is capable of traveling 3600 nmi at Mach 0.80 and has a maximum operating speed of Mach 0.85. It can reach its 41000 ft initial cruise altitude in 20 minutes and can climb to a maximum altitude of 45000 ft.

In 2009, the company conducted two powered rollouts one week apart. The Gulfstream G650 officially rolled out of the Savannah manufacturing facility under its own power on September 29, 2009. The G280 followed just one week later.

Both the G650 and the G280 flew before the end of 2009. The G650 took its first flight on November 25, while the G280 went up for the first time on December 11.

2010s
In November 2010, Gulfstream announced an expansion of its Savannah facilities through a $500-million, seven-year plan. The growth resulted in 1,000 additional Gulfstream jobs, an increase of more than 15 percent. In addition to the Savannah expansion, Gulfstream's sites in Westfield, Massachusetts, US, and Luton, UK, also grew in 2011. In October, Gulfstream announced an expansion of its service center at the Barnes Regional Airport in Westfield, Massachusetts, that will result in 100 additional Gulfstream jobs, a nearly 80 percent increase over the size of Gulfstream's Westfield workforce. The Luton service center also relocated to a 75,000-square-foot, more modern hangar. The hangar and accompanying office area nearly doubles space at the site, allowing Gulfstream Luton technicians to service Gulfstream's entire fleet, including the all-new G650, the company's flagship aircraft.

Gulfstream suffered a major setback on April 2, 2011, when one of its G650 ultra long-range business jets crashed on the runway at Roswell, NM, fatally injuring the two test pilots and two flight test engineers on board. The aircraft was conducting a takeoff-performance test during which an engine failure was simulated by reducing the right engine's thrust to idle. The G650 became airborne briefly at a high angle of attack before its right wingtip hit the runway, then slid on the ground and caught fire.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined the probable cause of the crash was an aerodynamic stall of the aircraft due to a failure to properly develop and validate takeoff speeds, persistent and increasingly aggressive attempts to achieve a V2 speed that was too low and an inadequate investigation of previous uncommanded roll events. Following the crash, Gulfstream raised the V2 speed of the G650. The NTSB accused Gulfstream of withholding information and the use of legal counsel during the investigation, which were denied by the company.

In November 2011, the Gulfstream G650 received its provisional type certificate (PTC) from the FAA. This cleared the way for the company to begin interior completions of the ultra-large-cabin, ultra-long-range business jet in preparation for customer deliveries in the second quarter of 2012, as originally planned.

In January 2011, General Dynamics Aviation Services was rebranded as Gulfstream to simplify its brand identity. Gulfstream now owns and operates nine service centers worldwide, plus one component repair facility.

As of late 2012 there were indications that Gulfstream was close to announcing the design of a quiet supersonic business jet, first drawings of which appeared in December 2012.

Gulfstream employs more than 11,500 people at 12 major locations: Savannah, Georgia.; Appleton, Wisconsin; Brunswick, Georgia; Dallas; Las Vegas; Westfield, Massachusetts; West Palm Beach, Florida; Van Nuys and Lincoln, California in the US; London, UK; Mexicali, Mexico, and Sorocaba, Brazil;

The Gulfstream G500/G600 were unveiled on October 14, 2014, with the G500 taxiing under its own power. It first flew on May 18, 2015. The longer G600 followed on December 17, 2016, intended for delivery in 2018.

The company expects the 2017 deliveries to be the same as 2016 at 115 units: 88 large and 27 midsize G280s.

Following the meeting of US President Donald Trump and Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in July 2019, Qatar Airways expressed a desire to buy large-cabin aircraft from Gulfstream.

2020s
On October 4, 2021, the company introduced the G400 and G800 to their product line.

On 28 March, 2023, Gulfstream opened a 12,000 ft2 sales and design center in Beverly Hills, housing mock ups for the G400, G700 and G800 cabins.

Government and special mission aircraft
About 200 Gulfstream are used by 35 governments, mainly the G550 : air transports of heads of state and government, airborne early warning, medical evacuation, high-altitude atmospheric research, and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.

Product history
The Grumman Gulfstream I (Model G-159) was a twin-turboprop business aircraft, certificated by the FAA on 21/05/1959.

The Grumman Gulfstream II was the first large business jet and basis of the Shuttle Training Aircraft. It had many variants, some still produced today, under the same type certificate:

The later Gulfstream G650 has its own type certificate, approved on 07/09/2012. The new Gulfstream G500/G600 also has a separate type certificate.

Israel Aircraft Industries transferred ownership of the smaller Westwind Astra business jet, approved August 29, 1985 to Gulfstream Aerospace on March 26, 2002. Its derivative Astra SPX, approved January 8, 1996 was then named Gulfstream G100, approved August 9, 2002, and its second derivative Gulfstream G150 was approved on November 7, 2005. The larger IAI Galaxy Type certificate, approved December 16, 1998, was transferred the same day and renamed Gulfstream G200, approved January 16, 2002. It was developed into the Gulfstream G280 which have its own type certificate approved August 30, 2012.

The Gulfstream American Hustler was a prototype business aircraft, which first flew on January 11, 1978, using a turboprop and a turbofan simultaneously. It was developed into prototype military trainer Gulfstream Peregrine 600, first flight May 22, 1981, and the prototype single jet Gulfstream Peregrine, first flight January 14, 1983.

The Sukhoi-Gulfstream S-21 was a projected supersonic business jet.

Community involvement
Gulfstream Aerospace is involved in the local Savannah community through a variety of programs and initiatives. In November 2018, $2 million was donated to the United Way of America. Over 100 programs and services at 58 nonprofits in several Georgia counties have benefited.

title: Gulfstream Aerospace


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User talk:Lir/artiste

From VfD

 * Wikipedia is not a web hosting service. Kingturtle 22:03, 7 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * Keep. Wikipedia is not a web hosting service, but members should be allowed some leeway in what they post (to their user pages), within reason. As long as they aren't copyvios, I don't see why we should delete. →Raul654 22:05, Mar 7, 2004 (UTC)
 * True, but no need to be too rigid about enforcing it. Remember, as long as Lir is editing his user page, he's not editing articles.—Eloquence 22:06, Mar 7, 2004 (UTC)
 * Surely it would be better if he did edit articles instead? :) Anyway; I'm fine with this as long as it doesn't go overboard. Fredrik 22:14, 7 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * Keep per arguments above. Anthony DiPierro 22:19, 7 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * Keep, unless it gets extreme. Niteowlneils 23:08, 7 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * Keep - Texture 00:55, 8 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * Keep. Things can get out of hand but this certainly hasn't. Some people waste forever writing life stories, why not have some interesting art. Keep a check on it though. --Tappyea 01:49, 8 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * It has revived my interest in modern art. - Arthur George Carrick 01:57, 8 Mar 2004 (UTC)

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: User talk:Lir/artiste


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New England Complex Systems Institute

The New England Complex Systems Institute (NECSI) is an independent American research institution and think tank dedicated to advancing analytics and its application to the challenges of society, and the interaction of complex systems with the environment. NECSI offers educational programs, conducts research, and hosts the International Conference on Complex Systems. It was founded in 1996 and is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Overview
NECSI was established in 1996 by faculty of various New England academic institutions, including MIT, Harvard, Brandeis, and others, to encourage communication and collaboration among researchers studying complex systems.

The NECSI web site describes "complex systems" as follows: Complex systems have multiple interacting components whose collective behavior cannot be simply inferred from the behavior of components. The recognition that understanding the parts cannot explain collective behavior has led to various new concepts and methodologies that are affecting all fields of science and engineering, and are being applied to technology, business and even social policy.

NECSI promotes collaboration and dissemination of new research among complex systems researchers in wide-ranging disciplines and numerous institutions. NECSI's activities for this purpose include hosting an international research conference and maintaining a roster of affiliated scholars and co-faculty.

International Conference on Complex Systems
NECSI hosts the International Conference on Complex Systems (ICCS), whose aims are: first, to investigate those properties or characteristics that appear to be common to the very different complex systems now under study; and second, to encourage cross fertilization among the many disciplines involved.

ICCS takes place on an occasional basis, with the most recent (eighth conference) in 2011. ICCS conferences have featured notable computer scientists (e.g., Gerald Sussman), mathematicians (e.g., Stephen Wolfram), systems theorists (e.g., John Sterman), physicists (e.g. Sandy Pentland), economists (e.g., James Stock), and others. Events at ICCS include research presentations and workshops, as well as pedagogical sessions aimed at a wider community.

Affiliates and co-faculty
NECSI provides a public platform for affiliates and co-faculty at numerous academic institutions, primarily in the New England region. These researchers also contribute to NECSI educational programs.

 * Faculty and co-Faculty

 * Yaneer Bar-Yam, President
 * Michel Baranger
 * Dan Braha
 * Charles Cantor
 * Richard Cooper
 * Terrence Deacon
 * Irving Epstein
 * William Gelbart
 * Ernest Hartmann
 * Jerome Kagan
 * Mehran Kardar
 * Les Kaufman
 * Eric Klopfer
 * Frannie Leautier
 * Blake LeBaron
 * Luci Leykum
 * Seth Lloyd
 * Sandy Pentland
 * Tom Petzinger
 * Stuart Pimm
 * Larry Rudolph
 * Thomas Schelling
 * Peter Senge
 * Temple Smith
 * John Sterman
 * James Stock
 * Nassim Nicholas Taleb
 * Hiroshi Tasaka
 * Günter Wagner
 * Peter Timmer

 * Affiliates

 * Marcus de Aguiar
 * Zvi Bar-Yam
 * Bruce M. Boghosian
 * Raffaele Calabretta
 * Jeffrey Cares
 * Gavin Crooks
 * Eric Feigl-Ding
 * Meghan Dierks
 * Melissa Gerber
 * Helen Harte
 * Steven Hassan
 * Sui Huang
 * Michael J. Jacobson
 * Fumiaki Katagiri
 * Andreas Kemper
 * Mark Klein
 * Greg Lindsay
 * David Meyer
 * Ali Minai
 * Joseph Norman
 * Hiroki Sayama
 * Paul Seguin
 * Tommaso Toffoli
 * Omer Trajman
 * Sheldon White
 * Uri Wilensky

Evolution and ecology
NECSI researchers have contributed to the understanding of evolutionary dynamics, the evolution of altruism, the origin and characterization of biodiversity, and the interplay between evolution and ecology.

Much of the work done at NECSI has focused on the role of the spatial distribution of species, an often overlooked factor of evolutionary dynamics. In the case where portions of a population are geographically isolated from each other, for example, Yaneer Bar-Yam was able to demonstrate shortcomings in the gene-centered view of evolution, an approximation that is valid only if there is complete mixing of alleles in the gene pool.

Networks
Studies of network topologies have found surprising similarities between a variety of complex social, technological and biological networks. NECSI research in networks focuses on the relationship between structure, dynamics and function. The study of networks has emerged in diverse disciplines as a means of analyzing complex relational data.

Social systems
NECSI research in social systems focuses on the collective actions that create revolutions, ethnic violence, urban health, fads and panics, global food and so on. The role of individuals and organization can be analyzed by techniques and tools of complex systems.

Representation
Complex systems exhibit behaviors at a variety of spatial and temporal scales. Researchers working at NECSI have developed a mathematical formalism for simultaneously describing systems on multiple scales. This formalism had been applied to physical systems, information systems, organizational behavior, engineering projects and military conflict.

An essential tool for multiscale analysis, the complexity profile, the relationship between the observed complexity of a system and the scale of observation.

Post-crisis focus on social and economic systems
Since 2009, the Institute's research focus has shifted to socio-economic systems, with particular attention to the causes and consequences of the 2008 financial crisis and dynamics of Twitter networks and social sentiment. Policy-relevant articles on stock market regulation and market crashes, food riots and the causes of high food prices,  and the European bond crisis have been released straight to the press. Peer-reviewed articles continue to appear on other subjects.

Further fields of research

 * Systems biology
 * Systems engineering
 * Organizational management
 * Negotiation
 * Network Science

Public attention
NECSI's work on the global food crisis has been widely cited by the press,  by movements to curb financial speculation,  and included among the top-10 discoveries in science in 2011 by Wired. NECSI's scientific visualizations have received multiple citations on top-10 lists.

NECSI has been called "a pioneer in using mathematics, computation and other quantitative methods to analyse topics like ethnic violence, economic crises and healthcare systems" by the press.

Early Warning on the COVID-19 Coronavirus Pandemic
Prior to global lockdowns, in January, 2020 Joseph Norman, Yaneer Bar Yam, and Nassim Taleb submitted a paper to the White House administration, urging them to take drastic steps to curtail the disease. NECSI later assembled EndCoronaVirus.org, which included over 4,000 volunteers by March 21, 2020. The network of volunteers built endCoronavirus.org with the goal to minimize the impact of COVID-19 by providing useful data and guidelines for action.

title: New England Complex Systems Institute


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USS Furse

USS Furse (DD-882/DDR-882) was a Gearing-class destroyer of the United States Navy.

Namesake
John Houseal Furse was born on 20 April 1880 in South Carolina. He was a member of the United States Naval Academy class of 1901. His first service was on the Asiatic Station, where he served in Manila during a scientific expedition, as well as in other ships. Returning to the United States, he joined the USS Illinois (BB-7) on 29 September 1904, and served in Cuban waters. Lieutenant Furse died on board Illinois on 30 September 1907, of injuries received fighting a storm which threatened the ship.

Construction and commissioning
Furse was laid down by the Consolidated Steel Corporation at Orange, Texas on 23 September 1944, launched on 9 March 1945 by Miss Eugenia A. Furse, sister of Lieutenant Furse and commissioned on 10 July 1945.

Service history
Furse sailed from Norfolk, Virginia on 7 November 1945 for occupation duty in the Far East, calling at San Diego, California and Pearl Harbor en route to Tokyo Bay, where she arrived on 22 December. After acting as courier between Nagoya and Wakayama, she conducted training operations out of Kobe, then sailed back to Pearl Harbor to prepare for participation in "Operation Crossroads". In this operation, atomic weapons tests in the Marshall Islands during the summer of 1946, Furse acted as plane guard to carriers of JTF 1.

The destroyer returned to San Diego on 12 August 1946, and until her transfer to the Atlantic Fleet in April 1949, operated on training along the west coast, and completed another tour of duty in the Far East. She was reclassified DDR-882 on 18 March 1949. She arrived at Newport, Rhode Island, on 21 April 1949. On 10 September, she sailed on the first of her tours of duty with the 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean Sea, which were annual, aside from 1951 and 1959, through 1960. From January 1951, Furse was homeported at Norfolk. (Her homeport from 1959 to 1962 was Charleston, South Carolina) Early in 1963 Furse was in the Shipyard in Philadelphia for FRAM overhaul.

Among the highlights of the destroyer's operations were visits to ports of northern Europe between September 1950 and December, during which she represented the United States at the funeral of King Gustav V of Sweden. From 1952 onward, she often served with the Operational Development Force, perfecting techniques in anti-submarine warfare. A midshipman summer cruise in 1952 again took her to ports of northern Europe. Marking her 1956 tour of duty in the Mediterranean was her participation in the evacuation of Americans from Israel and Egypt during the Suez Crisis, and lengthy patrol duty in the eastern Mediterranean. The next year, she made two tours of duty in the Mediterranean because of the tense political situation prevailing, and in the summer of 1958, she sailed for NATO operations in northern waters, visiting Santander, Spain; Stavanger, Norway; and Ghent, Belgium. In the periods between her deployments, Furse carried out the intensive training schedule of Destroyer Force, Atlantic Fleet, cruising the east coast and the Caribbean in operations with ships of all types and major fleet exercises.

Furse was part of the blockade in October 1962, during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

During June 1965 Furse was a unit of recovery force for the fourth Gemini astronaut space shot. In the winter of 1967, Furse spent time in the Boston Naval Shipyard receiving her regular yard overhaul period in preparation for a WESTPAC cruise in the summer of 1968. For a fuller description of this cruise, the first on which Furse was in active combat and was hit by enemy fire, see "School of Hard Knots", a memoir by junior officer on Furse, Henry (Hank) Abernathy. Captained by Michael T. Greeley USN, Furse operated with the Seventh Fleet in the Tonkin Gulf, including the recommissioned battleship USS New Jersey (BB 62). Shortly after her yard period, she took part in refresher training in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba followed by Fleet exercises in the Atlantic and Caribbean.

In Spanish Navy
Furse was decommissioned on 31 August 1972, and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 2 June 1975. She was transferred to Spain and renamed Gravina. Gravina was scrapped in 1991.

title: USS Furse


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Mountville

Mountville is the name of two towns in the United States:

 * Mountville, Georgia
 * Mountville, Pennsylvania
 * Mountville, South Carolina
 * Mountville, Virginia

title: Mountville


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Memon people

The Memon are a Muslim community in Gujarat India, and Sindh, Pakistan, the majority of whom follow the Hanafi fiqh of Sunni Islam. They are divided into different groups based on their origins: Kathiawari Memons, Kutchi Memons and Bantva Memons from the Kathiawar, Kutch and Bantva regions of Gujarat respectively, and Sindhi Memons from Sindh.

Memons have cultural similarities with the Khoja, Bohra, and other Gujarati peoples. They speak the Memoni language as their first language, which shares vocabulary with the Sindhi language, Kutchi language and Gujarati languages.

Today, the Nawab Memons are connected through globally recognized organisations such as the World Memon Organisation (WMO) and International Memon Organisation (IMO).

Sindhi, Gujarati origins
Memon lineage traces back to the Lohanas who traditionally practiced Hinduism. The origin of the name comes from Mu'min (مؤمن, "believer" in Arabic) and later evolved to present name Memon. The Memon community was founded in the 15th century by 700 families comprising 6,178 persons total. According to Anthovan, those Lohanas of Thatta, Sindh who converted from Hinduism to Islam became Memons and were invited by Rao Khengarji Jadeja, ruler of Bhuj in the 16th century, to settle in Bhuj. It is from there that Kutchi Memons migrated to Kathiawar and mainland Gujarat. Surat in Gujarat was an important trading centre from 1580 to 1680.

Merchant tradesman
Due to the mercantile nature of the community, Memons began a significant migration beyond the borders of India in the 18th and 19th centuries. This led to communities developing in the Middle East, South Africa, Sri Lanka and East Asia. Memon traders set up a network of joint stock companies acting in coordination with other members in an area ranging from Central Africa to China. Memon donors made significant financial contributions to construct mosques during this time, including Juma Masjid Mosque and Jamia Mosque. By late 19th century several thousand Memons had settled in Mumbai due to trading. Memon representative leaders traded with British capitalists to develop their Indian monopolies. The area of Mumbai in which the Memon traders congregated later became known as the Memonwada.

20th century
The early 20th century saw a consolidation of the Memon community in South Asia as well as South Africa. They began to organise important societies including Memon Education and Welfare Society and Memon Chamber of Commerce. Memon community made significant financial contributions to preserve the Ottoman Empire but were unable to prevent its decline. The partition of Pakistan and India led to significant migration in both directions for the community. The principal mass of Memons was and is composed of petty tradesmen, shopkeepers, grocers, wandering peddlers, and agents and clerks in firms. In regions of Kutch (India), and near Karachi and on the Makran coast of present day Pakistan, the Memons are still engaged in commercial agriculture, gardening, and fishing.

Cultural traditions
While Memons are generally Sunni Muslims, many continue to follow Modern Hindu law in matters regarding property inheritance, community leadership structure and mutual support for members. Memon see themselves to be from the Buddhist Kshatriya lineage. Even within Memons, there are caste hierarchies that some follow regarding marriage practices.

According to folklore, the blessings of the Islamic saint Sayad Kadiri upon the Memons are responsible for their success in business and trade. A more pragmatic explanation for their success is that Memon have been historically considered honest brokers. Following commercial caste model, Memons also offer support community members in financial matters by giving loans and offering business assistance. The community annually celebrates 11 April as "Memons Day" through acts of humanitarian service.

Memons worldwide
Today, Memon communities are scattered throughout the world including the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, South Africa, the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada. However, major concentrations of Memon remain located in Karachi, Pakistan and Gujarat, India. In Karachi there is a community of Memon people from Bantva and their descendants known as Bantva Memons. United under the banner of Halari Memon General Jama'at, the Halari Memon are another category and followers of the Hanafi school.

Memons were also one of three classes living in South Africa when Mahatma Gandhi went there in 1893, Memons were traders serving the Indian diaspora in South Africa. Memons are known for their involvement in business and philanthropy, with Memons having played a major part in the building of Pakistani industry.

title: Memon people


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Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/List of alternative, speculative and disputed theories

This page is an archive of the discussion surrounding the proposed deletion of a page entitled List of alternative, speculative and disputed theories.

Further comments should be made on the talk page rather than here as this page is kept as an historic record.

The result of the debate was to keep the page.

Sole reason of page is propagation of POV. Maroux 09:40, 2004 Mar 7 (UTC)
 * Borderline keep. Interesting subject matter, but POV needs a good industrial-strength cleaning by a set of fresh eyes. (not mine) Davodd 10:59, Mar 7, 2004 (UTC)
 * Keep. Pseudoscience has to be studied as well. Mikkalai 11:34, 7 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * Fuel for disputes, but the topic is good. Should be NPOV if the criterion for inclusion is that the theory is not accepted by the scientific establishment (regardless of whether you think the scientific establishment is right or wrong). Keep. Fredrik 12:56, 7 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * It's been around since mid-2003 and has been edited considerably in that time. Suddenly deleting it now would surely be grossly inappropriate. It's a useful list, though the intro needs severe NPOVing. I might suggest some links to and material from Anomalous phenomenon. - David Gerard 13:03, Mar 7, 2004 (UTC)
 * Delete. Inherently POV. Anthony DiPierro 13:26, 7 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * Keep. I agree with Fredrik's criterion for inclusion. Average Earthman 16:15, 7 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * Keep. Seems to be trying to take a balanced view on an inherently controversial subject. MK 16:52, 7 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * Keep. I remember when this page had the word "fringe" in its title ;-) — Timwi 16:55, 7 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * Keep. I agree with Fredrik. Wile E. Heresiarch 17:38, 7 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * Delete, reluctantly. Few who agree with one of these theories would acknowledge that they are speculative or pseudoscience. These theories probably ought to be classified as merely alternative views regarding whatever subject they happen to pertain to, not lumped together derisively. Everyking 17:39, 7 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * Keep but rename to List of disputed theories. That's much less POV.  moink 18:07, 7 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * I agree about renaming. Fredrik 19:20, 7 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * Keep if renamed to List of disputed theories. - Texture 18:22, 7 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * While I agree with DiPierro about POV, I think that revising the first para and changing the title will go far to neutralizing it. Denni 22:13, 2004 Mar 7 (UTC)
 * Keep. Always likely to be a battleground, but a valid topic. Historical difficulties in POVing aren't a reason for deletion, so long as it is possible to write NPOV material on the topic, and it is as has been demonstrated. (And probably those who waste everyone's time POVing this article would just be POVing some other article otherwise.) Andrewa 23:12, 7 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * Keep but rename List of theories disputed by modern science. mydogategodshat 00:44, 8 Mar 2004 (UTC)
 * That's better than what I suggested. But I don't like "modern."  How about List of theories disputed by mainstream science?  moink 00:53, 8 Mar 2004 (UTC)


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USS Newman K. Perry

USS Newman K. Perry (DD-883/DDR-883), was a Gearing-class destroyer of the United States Navy.

Namesake
Newman Kershaw Perry was born on 28 November 1880 in South Carolina. He was appointed Naval Cadet on 9 September 1897 and commissioned Ensign on 7 June 1903. Stationed on the USS Bennington (PG-4), he was killed by a boiler explosion on that ship at San Diego on 21 July 1905.

Construction and commissioning
Newman K. Perry was laid down by the Consolidated Steel Corporation at Orange, Texas on 10 October 1944, launched on 17 March 1945 by Mrs. Laura P. Gunter, sister of Ensign Perry and commissioned on 26 July 1945.

1945–1949
Following shakedown, Newman K. Perry served briefly with the Atlantic Fleet. On 7 November 1945, she got underway for Pearl Harbor, whence she traveled to Japan for three months' occupation duty. She returned to Pearl Harbor on 28 March 1946 and was assigned to Joint Task Force 1 for "Operation Crossroads", the 1946 atomic bomb test series at Bikini. Sailing for the Marshall Islands on 27 May, she witnessed tests "Able" and "Baker" and, in August, steamed for the United States.

On 18 August she arrived at San Diego whence she operated until 25 August 1947. Then, with DesDiv 132, she headed west, arriving at Yokosuka on 13 September. Three days later she sailed to Qingdao to commence a series of patrol, escort, search and rescue, ASW, and hydrographic survey missions and exercises along the China coast and off Taiwan and Okinawa. Relieved on 5 May 1948, she returned to San Diego, trained naval reservists through the summer, and in October entered the Mare Island Naval Shipyard for overhaul.

The destroyer departed San Francisco on 15 January 1949 and until April conducted exercises off the west coast. On 4 April, she departed San Diego with DesDiv 182 for Newport, Rhode Island, her new homeport, arriving 21 April.

1950–1968
After her return to Destroyer Forces, Atlantic Fleet, she rotated tours with the 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean Sea and midshipmen and reservist training cruises, and fleet, squadron and type training exercises with the 2nd Fleet. Redesignated a radar picket destroyer in 1950, she conducted her scheduled operations as DDR–883 until 1964 when Newman K. Perry underwent the FRAM I refit at the Boston Naval Shipyard until February 1965. The most visible alteration were the new bridge, the addition of a hangar and landing deck aft for the Gyrodyne QH-50 DASH drone and the addition of an ASROC launcher between the funnels. Modernized into a "regular" destroyer again, she resumed the designation DD-883.

On 26 August 1965, she collided with the aircraft carrier USS Shangri-La (CV-38) off Sardinia, in the Mediterranean, killing one and injuring another. She was repaired at Naples. A change in operations in 1959 took her to Charleston, South Carolina, which served as her homeport for several years before she resumed operations out of Newport.

A second change in operations took her to the Western Pacific for her overseas deployment in 1966. Departing Newport with Destroyer Division 201 on 4 October, she transited the Panama Canal, stopped in Hawaii, Japan, Okinawa and the Philippines, and arrived on station in the Mekong Delta of South Vietnam on 23 November. Assigned to fire support duties, she shelled enemy coastal storage areas until the 28th. She then shifted to Phú Quốc island, off the Cambodian-South Vietnamese border, to support Vietnamese and Special Forces units for five days, returning to the Delta area in December. Other assignments on that tour with the 7th Fleet took her along the coast to the DMZ and then to the Gulf of Tonkin for plane guard and search and rescue missions. On 8 March 1967, she departed the combat zone for Hong Kong before returning to Subic Bay for the last time. On the 27th she departed the Philippines for the Mediterranean and Newport, arriving on 8 May.

After overhaul at Boston, Newman K. Perry began 1968, with Caribbean exercises and on 4 April departed Newport for the Mediterranean to resume her annual deployments with the 6th Fleet.

1969–1981
In the 1971 Newman K. Perry was assigned to the Naval Reserve Force (NRF) as a unit of Destroyer Squadron 28. She was based in Newport, Rhode Island with a composite crew of active and reserve sailors. In Oct 1974, she hit a buoy foundation in NY harbor, opening a hole in the scoop injection of the forward engine room. After emergency repairs, she spent the night tied to a pier in Hoboken, NJ. Choppy seas from a storm that night broke open a steam pipe in the forward boiler room, as the ship was slammed into the pier for most of the night. A month in drydock at Todd Shipyards in Brooklyn followed. Then she left for Norfolk to test guns, where a forward turret misfired, causing further damage. She was decommissioned and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 27 February 1981.

ROKS Kyong Ki
Newman K. Perry was transferred to South Korea in 1981 for service in the Republic of Korea Navy and renamed ROKS Kyong Ki. South Korea decommissioned Kyong Ki in 1997. She later was damaged by fire and scrapped in 1999.

title: USS Newman K. Perry


text:
Talk:October Revolution

Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment
This article is or was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): Max Rowe-Sutton, Mfili5, Gmckay1, Kirbykarpan.

Above undated message substituted from Template:Dashboard.wikiedu.org assignment by PrimeBOT (talk) 05:34, 17 January 2022 (UTC)

The October "Revolution" wasn't a revolution per-se
It was a coup d'état. Russians actually held a democratic election after the actual, February Revolution. And the Bolsheviks lost in it, as in, they didn't get enough support to rule. So they overthrew the democratically elected government a few months later. That is a coup d'état. It is called a revolution only out of courtesy and a historiographic/political tradition. Erasing what went down in November 1917 and branding it as a "revolution of the people" was also very important for the nascent Soviet Union. Hence the naming—the October Revolution—as reinforced by Soviet institutions. LordParsifal (talk) 10:27, 13 February 2022 (UTC)

 * @LordParsifal Regardless of the accuracy, it is definitely the term's WP:COMMONNAME. Kinda like how French Fries are actually from Belgium, but everyone calls them French so that's their name. So short of a re-imagining of the term in the public mind, I don't imagine we should change it either. CaptainEek  Edits Ho Cap'n!⚓ 06:11, 14 February 2022 (UTC)

 * @CaptainEek I am not talking about renaming this article at all. Rather, the elaboration in the lead where it's still described as a revolution. That is factually incorrect.LordParsifal (talk) 05:30, 15 February 2022 (UTC)
 * You are pushing for changes that are not supported by most sources, based on a misguided view of "revolution". Revolution just means dramatic political change, it is a word commonly applied to the Nazi revolution in 1933. (t · c)  buidhe  02:19, 17 February 2022 (UTC)
 * Rabinowitch debunked the coup narrative. It was a coup in the sense that it was largely planned and executed by the Bolshevik leadership rather than a spontaneous revolutionary movement, but one with a lot of support, and in which local Soviets were often ahead of the leadership in calling for the overthrow of the Provisinal Government.
 * For instance nobody calls the February Revolution and the establishment of the PG a 'coup' even though the same arguments could apply to it. As the PG essentially came to power through a constitutional 'coup' by old elites in the Imperial Duma CamelUSSR (talk) 12:20, 6 March 2024 (UTC)

Err, wrong. Revolutions are by definition popular and stemming from the people, "the population" this is also the definition that Wikipedia itself puts forward. A coup differs from a revolution in that it's covert and carried out against the will of the people. A coup d'etat isn't a revolution. LordParsifal (talk) 06:24, 6 March 2022 (UTC)

 * If that it was a coup is so apparent, can you provide some reliable sources that back that up? CaptainEek  Edits Ho Cap'n!⚓ 08:55, 6 March 2022 (UTC)

title: Talk:October Revolution


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Buddy Jewell

Buddy Jewell Jr.  (born April 2, 1961) is an American country music singer who was the first winner on the USA Network talent show Nashville Star. Signed to Columbia Records in 2003, Jewell made his debut on the American country music scene with the release of his self-titled album, which produced the singles "Help Pour Out the Rain" and "Sweet Southern Comfort". Another album, Times Like These, followed in 2005.

Biography
Buddy Jewell was born in Lepanto, Arkansas, on April 2, 1961. He began playing guitar after buying one from a schoolmate during childhood, and saved the money that he earned bagging groceries to buy guitar lesson books. Jewell also listened to the music that his father, also named Buddy, played for him, and was taught by his uncle Clyde how to play "What a Friend We Have in Jesus". By age 15, Jewell had also taught himself how to play Johnny Cash's "I Still Miss Someone." After graduating from Osceola High School, he attended Arkansas State University where he was a member of Pi Kappa Alpha. Jewell majored in television and radio in college, although he left in his junior year to marry, despite the marriage only lasting two-and-a-half years.

Jewell later moved to Camden, Arkansas, at age 21 in pursuit of a musical career. There, he discovered a band called White Oak, which was seeking a new lead singer. This band was sponsored by a booking agency whose roster also included Canyon and a band founded by a then-unknown Trace Adkins. After touring with White Oak for four years, he moved to Dallas, Texas, where he took a role in a gunfighting show at Six Flags over Texas. He later entered a singing competition that was sponsored by the band Alabama, whose music was also an inspiration to him. He won the competition's top prize, which was an opening slot for the band.

After winning the competition, he competed on Star Search where he won Male Vocalist on several episodes. He later decided to move to Nashville, Tennessee, in 1993, and found work two years later as a demo singer. As a demo singer, he recorded more than 5,000 demos. Among the songs that Jewell recorded demos for were "Write This Down" for George Strait, "A Little Past Little Rock" for Lee Ann Womack, "The One" for Gary Allan and "You're Beginning to Get to Me" for Clay Walker. Jewell also self-released albums entitled One in a Row and Far Enough Away in 2001 and 2002 respectively.

Nashville Star and major-label music career
In 2003, Jewell competed in the first season of the television singing competition Nashville Star. He became the show's first winner that season, and was soon signed to a recording contract with Columbia Records Nashville.

2003–2004: Buddy Jewell
On May 5, 2003, two days after his win, Jewell's debut single "Help Pour Out the Rain" was shipped to radio. It became the highest-debuting single by a new country artist since the singles charts were first tabulated via Nielsen SoundScan in 1990. This song reached number three on the country charts and 29 on the pop charts. It was the first single from his self-titled debut album, which was produced by former RCA Records artist Clint Black and was recorded in ten days. Buddy Jewell sold 500,000 copies and earned a gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), in addition to producing a second number three country hit in "Sweet Southern Comfort", which also reached number 40 on the pop charts. This song was followed by the number 38 country single "One Step at a Time".

2004–2005: Times Like These
Jewell's second album for Columbia, Times Like These, was released in 2005. This album did not perform as well at radio, with its first single ("If She Were Any Other Woman") reaching number 27 on the charts, and the second single ("So Gone") failing to chart entirely. By the end of the year, Jewell was dropped from Columbia's roster.

2005–2011: Country Enough
He did not release another single until "This Ain't Mexico" in 2008, a self-released single. This was included on an album entitled Country Enough, which was released on Diamond Dust Records in 2008. In May 2011 Jewell released a new album "I Surrender All". He released two songs from this album "Jesus, Elvis, And Me" which was a country dance hit and "Somebody Who Would Die For You" which went up to No. 1 on the Christian Charts.

2015: My Father's Country
In 2015, Jewell signed with Lamon Records in Nashville and recorded an album produced with Grammy nominated artist-producer Dave Moody. The album My Father's Country featured a collection of classic country songs, including Abilene, Behind Closed Doors, Galveston and other songs Jewell grew up listening to his father sing. Buddy Jewell was inducted into the Arkansas Entertainers Hall of Fame on Tuesday, September 29, 2015, at the Noah's Event Center in Little Rock, AR.

2017–2019
In 2017 Jewell recorded an EP album "Reloaded". His single from the album is "I'm There" and it went to number one on the Power Source Christian Country charts.

title: Buddy Jewell


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Jay-Jay Okocha

Augustine Azuka "Jay-Jay" Okocha (born 14 August 1973) is a Nigerian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He won 73 caps for the Nigeria national team between 1993 and 2006, scoring 14 goals, and was a member of three FIFA World Cup squads. He is regarded as one of the greatest football players from Africa.

He played across multiple leagues, starting his career at Enugu Rangers in the Nigerian Professional Football League before moving to Borussia Neunkirchen in the Oberliga Südwest, Germany's third division, in July 1990. He would play in the Bundesliga, Süper Lig, Ligue 1, Premier League, EFL Championship, and Qatar Stars League before his retirement in 2008.

Club career
Okocha was born in Enugu, Enugu State. The name "Jay-Jay" was passed down from his elder brother James, who started playing football first; his immediate elder brother, Emmanuel was also called Emma Jay-Jay, but the name stuck with him instead. He began playing football on the streets just like many other football stars, usually with a makeshift ball.

In an interview with BBC Sport he said, "As far as I can remember, we used to play with anything, with any round thing we could find, and whenever we managed to get hold of a ball, that was a bonus! I mean it was amazing!" In 1990, he joined Enugu Rangers. In his time at the club he produced many spectacular displays, including one where he rounded off and scored a goal against experienced Nigerian goalkeeper Willy Okpara in a match against BCC Lions of Gboko. Later that year, he went on holiday to West Germany, the country that had just won the 1990 FIFA World Cup, so he could watch German league football. His friend Binebi Numa was playing in the Third Division for Borussia Neunkirchen, and one morning Okocha accompanied Numa to training, where he asked to join in. The Neunkirchen coach was impressed with Okocha's skills and invited him back the next day before offering him a contract. A year later, he joined 1. FC Saarbrücken, but stayed only a few months with the 2. Bundesliga side before a move to the Bundesliga with Eintracht Frankfurt.

Eintracht Frankfurt
Okocha joined Eintracht Frankfurt in December 1991, where he linked up with many well-known players including Ghanaian international striker Tony Yeboah and later Thomas Doll. He continued to shine for the German side, one highlight being a goal he scored against Karlsruher SC, dribbling in the penalty box, even going past some players twice, and slotting the ball past goalkeeper Oliver Kahn. The goal was voted Goal of the Season by many football magazines, and also voted as the 1993 Goal of the Year by viewers of Sportschau (an ARD German TV sports programme). In 1995, Okocha, Yeboah and Maurizio Gaudino were all involved in a feud with manager Jupp Heynckes, which led to their departure from the club.

Yeboah and Gaudino later left for England, while Okocha stayed until the end of the season when Eintracht were relegated to the 2. Bundesliga, before signing for Süper Lig club Fenerbahçe. In the Bundesliga he scored 18 goals in 90 matches.

Fenerbahçe
Okocha joined Turkish club Fenerbahçe for approximately £1 million following Eintracht Frankfurt's relegation to the 2. Bundesliga. In his two seasons with the team, he amassed 30 goals in 62 appearances, many of them coming from direct free kicks, which became something of a trademark for him at the club.

Okocha acquired Turkish citizenship during his time at the club and chose the name Muhammed Yavuz while playing.

Paris Saint-Germain
In 1998, French side Paris Saint-Germain spent around £14 million to sign Okocha, making him the most expensive African player at the time. In his four-year stint with PSG, he played 84 matches and scored 12 goals. He also served as a mentor for young Brazilian footballer and future Ballon d'Or winner Ronaldinho during his time in Paris.

In the 2001 UEFA Intertoto Cup Okocha would go on to score 5 goals and help PSG become joint champions along with Aston Villa F.C. and ES Troyes AC.

Bolton Wanderers
On 18 June Okocha joined Bolton Wanderers on a free transfer after leaving PSG in the summer of 2002 following the FIFA World Cup. His debut season, despite being hampered by injuries, made him a favourite with the Bolton fans, with the team printing shirts with the inscription "Jay-Jay – so good they named him twice". He steered the team away from relegation with seven goals, including one later voted the team's Goal of the Season in the vital league win against West Ham United. This was also chosen as Bolton's best ever Premier League goal by a fan vote in 2008. The next season saw Okocha receive more responsibility as he was given the captain's armband following Guðni Bergsson's retirement. As captain he led Bolton to the 2004 Football League Cup final, their first cup final in nine years, where they finished runners-up to Middlesbrough.

In 2006, Okocha was stripped of the captaincy—something he said he had seen coming, as there had been a change in attitude from some staff members. This was likely due to his proposed move to the Middle East, which had been the subject of growing speculation. At the end of the season, he refused a one-year extension in order to move to Qatar.

Following Bolton's relegation from the Premier League in 2012, Okocha stated that his spell at the club was now rendered a waste of time, because the club had not invested and improved on the foundations that were laid during his time there.

In 2017, Okocha was voted the best player to have ever played for Bolton Wanderers at the Reebok/Macron Stadium.

Hull City
After just one season in Qatar, Football League Championship side Hull City signed Okocha on a free transfer in 2007, after the player had been linked to Real Salt Lake and Sydney FC. It was a move he made saying that "God had told him to do so". He was however unable to contribute greatly to Hull's promotion campaign due to fitness and constant injury problems, playing only 18 games and scoring no goals. Hull still succeeded in winning promotion to the Premier League for the first time in their 104-year history. At the end of the season, after changing his mind on a proposed retirement due to Hull's promotion, he was released by the club, which ultimately sent him into retirement.

In 2012 he came out of retirement and signed with Bengal Premier League Soccer team Durgapur Vox Champions. However, the season was postponed and the league itself folded in 2013 before him making any appearance for the team.

International career
Okocha made his official debut for Nigeria in their 2–1 1994 FIFA World Cup Qualifier away loss against Ivory Coast in May 1993. It was not until his second cap and home debut that he became a favourite with the Nigerian supporters. With Nigeria trailing 1–0 against Algeria, in a match they needed to win, he scored from a direct free kick to equalise, before helping the team to a 4–1 win, eventually securing qualification to their first World Cup. In 1994, he was a member of both the victorious 1994 African Cup of Nations squad and the World Cup squad who made it to the second round before losing a dramatic match against eventual runners-up Italy.

In 1996, Okocha became a key member of an arguably more successful Nigerian side, their Olympic gold winning side at the Atlanta Games, later nicknamed the "Dream Team" by the Nigerian press after the USA 1992 Olympics gold winning basketball team, as they overcame Brazil in the semi-finals, before coming back from 2–0 down to 3–2 up against Argentina in the final. At the 1998 FIFA World Cup, Okocha played for a disappointing Super Eagles side who failed to live up to expectations, again reaching the round of 16, albeit with less impressive performances save for their 3–2 opening win against Spain. This did not destroy interest in Okocha, who had entertained fans with his trademark skills and dribbles and went on to be named in the squad of the tournament.

Okocha again joined the Super Eagles in the 2000 African Cup of Nations, which Nigeria co-hosted with Ghana. He scored three goals in the tournament, two in the opening game against Tunisia, and was given a standing ovation by the nearly 60,000 in attendance when he left the field. The Super Eagles then went all the way to the final against Cameroon, with Okocha captaining his side and scoring the equaliser to tie the game 2–2 before losing in the penalty shootout at the end of extra time. He then captained the Super Eagles to the following 2002, 2004 and 2006, consecutively finishing all three tournaments in third place.

He made a return to the Super Eagles for a testimonial against an African select side in Warri. The game featured former players Daniel Amokachi, Alloysius Agu, John Fashanu, Benjani and Sulley Muntari. Nigeria won the match 2–1 with Okocha scoring the winning goal after appearing for the side in the second half. In March 2004, he was named one of the top 125 living footballers by Pelé.

Style of play
A quick, talented, agile, and skilful playmaker, Okocha usually played as an attacking midfielder, and is widely considered by pundits internationally as the best Nigerian footballer ever, and as one of the best African players of all time. Okocha was known for his confidence and clever trickery with the ball, technique, creativity, flair, close control, and smooth dribbling skills, as well as his turn of pace and his use of feints, in particular his version of the stepover (nicknamed the Okocha stepover) and his trademark turns. In 2012, Allan Jiang of Bleacher Report rated Okocha as one of the greatest dribblers of all time. Due to his range of passing, Okocha was capable of creating chances for teammates; he was also known for his ability to produce long throw-ins. While not being particularly prolific or consistent in his finishing or goalscoring, Okocha, possessed a powerful shot from long range and was an effective free-kick taker, which saw him score some spectacular and ingenious goals through his career. Due to his skill and nickname, he was described as being 'so good that they named him twice' (a line immortalised in a terrace chant while Okocha played for Bolton Wanderers). He is still remembered by Fenerbahçe fans as one of the legends of the club and the Turkish football league. In addition to being an inspiration for many other African footballers, such as Asamoah Gyan, Okocha also was a major influence on the playing style of several other footballers across the globe, including German playmaker Mesut Özil, as well Brazilian playmaker Ronaldinho, whom Okocha played alongside during their time together at Paris Saint-Germain. Okocha became known as the "African Maradona" in the media, due to his skill and decisive performances for his country. Despite his ability, however, he was also known for being inconsistent, and for his lack of tactical discipline on the pitch.

Post-playing career
In late 2014 Okocha was added to the FIFA football game series as a "Legend" which honours his years as a great footballer.

Okocha was elected as the Chair of the Delta State Football Association on 21 February 2015. In April 2015, he expressed his interest in becoming the president of the Nigeria Football Federation.

On 15 May 2016, Okocha played in a charity match as part of "Team John McGinlay" against "Team Tony Kelly" at the Macron Stadium and scored a hat-trick in his team's 6–2 win.

In June 2019, it was reported that Okocha had been charged with alleged money laundering in Scotland.

Okocha has served as a football pundit for African sports broadcaster, Supersports since 2019, providing analysis for major tournaments, including the African Cup of Nations and the European championships.

On 14 November 2021, Okocha played in a charity match as part of a team of Bolton Wanderers Legends against the current Bolton first team, with the match helping to raise money for the mother of Bolton player Gethin Jones, after she was diagnosed with motor neuron disease. The Bolton first team won 7–4, with Okocha scoring a penalty for the Legends team.

In an interview he told why he never played for big clubs like Real Madrid CF was because of wage issues and racism. He also told them that the money they offer him was like he was doing them a favor.

Personal life
Okocha is a member of the Anioma community, a sub-group of the Igbo people. His older brother Emmanuel is also a former footballer who played for the Nigerian national team. He has a nephew, Alex Iwobi, who plays for Fulham and Nigeria.

International

 * Scores and results list Nigeria's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Okocha goal.

Honours
Bolton Wanderers
 * Football League Cup runner-up: 2003–04

Individual
 * Goal of the Year (Germany): 1993
 * FIFA World Cup All-Star Team (Reserve): 1998
 * Premier League Player of the Month: November 2003
 * Africa Cup of Nations Best Player: 2004
 * Bolton Wanderers Player of the Year: 2004–05
 * IFFHS All-time Africa Men's Dream Team: 2021

title: Jay-Jay Okocha


text:
USS Floyd B. Parks

USS Floyd B. Parks (DD-884) was a Gearing-class destroyer in service with the United States Navy from 1945 to 1973. She was scrapped in 1974.

Namesake
Floyd Bruce Parks was born on 16 January 1911 in Salisbury, Missouri, the first child of James B. Parks and his wife Elizabeth Ann Bowman. James Parks was a widower with one son from his first marriage. Floyd Parks also had a younger brother, Billy Bowman Parks, born in 1921. Their father died on 3 February 1924. He enlisted in the United States Navy in 1928 and served two years aboard destroyers. In 1930, he received an appointment to the United States Naval Academy. Parks earned the infamous Black "N" award, given for major infractions, on a number of occasions. He sang in the Midshipman Choir and was a member of Annapolis' water polo team, also participating in football and swimming. He graduated in the upper third of his class of 1934, and chose a commission in United States Marine Corps. He was appointed a second lieutenant on 1 June and assigned to the Philadelphia Navy Yard for a year, before serving on the cruiser USS Astoria (CA-34). In May 1936, he reported to Naval Air Station Pensacola for flight training. While swimming in the Gulf of Mexico, Parks and an enlisted man rescued a Marine private from drowning, winning commendation for his "quick action, good judgment and swimming ability".

Parks was designated a Naval Aviator on 12 June 1937, and in August reported to Naval Air Station San Diego, California. The following year, he married Margaret Elizabeth Murray of El Paso, Texas. In June 1940, he was reassigned to NAS Pensacola as a flight instructor. In May 1941, he transferred to the First Marine Aircraft Wing, Fleet Marine Force, Quantico, Virginia, and trained as a dive bomber pilot. He remained in that assignment until March 1942, when he joined the Second Marine Aircraft Wing in San Diego for deployment to Midway Atoll.

He was promoted to the rank of Major on 8 May 1942, and given command of Marine Fighting Squadron 221 (VMF-221). The squadron was predominantly equipped with Brewster F2A-3 (Model B-439) fighter aircraft, supplemented by a handful of Grumman F4F-3 Wildcats, all handed down from U.S. Navy squadrons. More than half of the aviators assigned to Parks' unit were fresh from flight training in San Diego. Parks was killed in action on the first day of the Battle of Midway on 4 June 1942, while leading his squadron against a superior force of Japanese fighters and bombers attacking the island. He was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross.

History
The destroyer was laid down by the Consolidated Steel Corporation at Orange, Texas on 30 October 1944, launched on 31 March 1945 by Mrs. Floyd B. Parks, widow of Major Parks and commissioned on 31 July 1945.

Floyd B. Parks arrived at San Diego, her home port, 16 November 1945, and sailed 20 November for her first tour of duty in the Far East, patrolling the coast of China and operating in the Marianas Islands until her return to San Diego 11 February 1947. In the period prior to the outbreak of war in Korea, Floyd B. Parks twice more deployed to the Far East for duty with the US 7th Fleet, returning from her second such cruise 13 June 1950, just before the North Koreans crossed the 38th parallel. At once she prepared to return to duty as a standby at Pearl Harbor, available should war spread, returning to San Diego 20 August.

Korean War
Floyd B. Parks operated with the Seventh Fleet in support of United Nations Forces during the Korean War. She sailed from San Diego 19 February 1951 to join in United Nations operations in Korea. On 16 March she joined the fast carrier task force, screening them during air operations off the east coast as well as spending a total of 60 days in Wonsan Harbor on blockade and bombardment duty. She returned to San Diego 10 October 1951, and after west coast operations, sailed for duty in the Far East again 31 May 1952. Along with duty similar to that of her first war cruise, she patrolled in the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait.

Cold War
During her 1955 Far Eastern cruise, Floyd B. Parks took part in evacuation of the Dachen Islands during the First Taiwan Strait Crisis, and while in the Orient once more 11 March 1956, collided with the heavy cruiser USS Columbus (CA-74), losing two men and a 40 ft section of her bow. Skillful work by her crew saved their ship, and brought her safely into Naval Station Subic Bay for temporary repairs. Upon her return to Long Beach Naval Shipyard 14 May 1956, Floyd B. Parks' damaged bow was replaced with that of the uncompleted destroyer USS Lansdale (DD-766) and after completion of repairs and installation of new equipment Floyd B. Parks returned to her west coast-Far East rotation through 1962. She then entered the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and underwent an extensive Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization (FRAM) overhaul until February 1963.

Vietnam War
During the Vietnam War, Floyd B. Parks served as plane guard for aircraft carriers on Yankee Station in the Tonkin Gulf, participated in Operation Sea Dragon, patrolled on search and rescue duties, and carried out naval gunfire support missions.

Floyd B. Parks was decommissioned on 2 July 1973, stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 2 July 1973, and sold for scrapping on 29 April 1974.

title: USS Floyd B. Parks


text: File:Jennifer Love Hewitt cd cover.jpg

title: File:Jennifer Love Hewitt cd cover.jpg


text:
Nashville Star

Nashville Star is an American reality television singing competition program that aired for six seasons, from 2003 to 2008. Its first five seasons aired on USA Network, while the last season aired on NBC. Its five seasons on USA made it the longest-running competition series on cable television at the time. In Canada, the show aired on CMT through season 5, but moved to E! beginning with season 6. CMT in the United States reaired each episode in season 6.

It was similar to American Idol, in that performers had to sing to impress both celebrity judges and the public via call-in and/or internet votes. Unlike American Idol, however, the performers were limited to country music. This restriction was relaxed for Season 6, allowing for the finalists to choose from many genres of music, but the songs were arranged to maintain a country sound.

The show is credited with jump-starting the careers of singers Buddy Jewell, Miranda Lambert, Chris Young, and Kacey Musgraves among others. A Nashville Star-themed gifts and souvenirs shop featuring local items and city souvenirs opened in July 2008 at Nashville International Airport, one month before the show's final episode, and closed after over a decade.

Comparisons to American Idol
In a format nearly identical to the final round of American Idol, finalists performed one song per week individually and face criticism and/or praise from a panel of three judges. At the end of the show, voting opened to the viewing public, who cast votes by calling a toll-free telephone number or logging on to the show's official website (texting was added as a voting option in 2008). The performer with the fewest votes was eliminated.

However, because Nashville Star aired only once per week, eliminations were not announced until the following week. The finalists who have not been eliminated are called in random order to the stage one by one to perform until there are only two remaining. At that point, one was called to perform and the other was eliminated for receiving the fewest votes from the previous week. The finalists did not know the order in which they would perform and had less than one minute to prepare once their names were called. No votes are tallied on the season finale.

Much like American Idol, the judges were present to offer criticism to the finalists in an attempt to sway the voting public. Unlike Idol, however, Nashville Star's judges did not participate in the preliminary auditions (leaving that task to the show's producers), but they did act as mentors to the finalists (beginning with the 2008 season). The audition process was not seen on-air on USA Network versions, except for the first season (2003 season), but portions of it was seen in a montage during the premiere of the NBC version. Beginning with the 2008 move to NBC, the judges did assist producers in narrowing the field from 50 to 12. Each season (except for 2005), the judges eliminated finalists based on consensus on the premiere episode without sending the vote to the public (the process continued for a few more episodes during the first two seasons).

Whereas American Idol generally elevated people off the street to stardom, Nashville Star finalists were usually already somehow involved in the country music industry, but may not have attained a record deal on a major label. Past finalists have included studio musicians, background singers, and independent artists. Finalists were usually songwriters, in addition to being singers. In each season, one episode was dedicated to songs written by the finalists. Nashville Star did not have the same age limits as American Idol, and performers in their 30s and 40s were finalists, although most were in their 20s.

Nashville Star always featured a live band, led by John Bohlinger.

Appearing on both shows in the same season
In 2006, several musicians appeared on both American Idol and Nashville Star. Kenny Rogers made appearances as a guest performer live on both shows within two weeks of each other. Also, Patti LaBelle appeared as a guest judge on Star one week after mentoring on Idol. David Foster did the same, although two weeks apart.

In 2007, five days after Jewel's debut as the new host of Nashville Star, she appeared as a guest judge on the season premiere of American Idol. The Idol segments, however, were taped several weeks before she was named host of Nashville Star.

Broadcast
Regular episodes of Nashville Star ran for 60 minutes each. The show occasionally had a longer runtime (90 or 120 minutes), usually on season premieres and finales. The first three seasons featured nine episodes each. The series' run was cut to eight episodes beginning in 2006.

Finalists lived together for the entire run of the show. During the first two seasons, the finalists lived in a large house near Nashville's Music Row. Beginning with the 2005 season, finalists shared a large suite at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center. Excerpts of the finalists' interaction with each other in their living environment were often edited into the show.

In addition, most episodes included an established country music act making a guest appearance to perform a song.

Nashville Star was produced by Reveille Productions and originated live (except for each season's premiere episode, which was taped) from the now-demolished Acuff Theatre at the Opry Entertainment Complex in Nashville, Tennessee. The competition took place over the months of March and April in its first four seasons, though it moved to January and February for the 2007 season and to the summer months in 2008.

Prizes
The winner of Nashville Star received a recording contract (through Sony Music in Seasons 1 and 2, Universal South Records in Season 3, RCA Label Group in Season 4, and Warner Bros. Music in Seasons 5 and 6), a performance on the Grand Ole Opry, and a pickup truck (Chevrolet from 2005–2007, Toyota in 2008). The 2008 season was to also award the winner a performance at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China, though that was later canceled. The top four finalists each season were involved in "The Nashville Star Tour", in which they performed together on a tour of small venues for a few months following the season.

Criticisms
Nashville Star was criticized from its inception as being an American Idol ripoff, but the show outlived many critics' initial predictions of failure.

Fifth-season judge Blake Shelton told the New York Times, "I think it's disastrous that there hasn't been a winner to go on to be a consistent star in Nashville. In order for the show to have credibility and for it to take another step, we need a Carrie Underwood to come out of it." Despite this, the show was a ratings hit for USA Network, and was moved to broadcast network television after five seasons.

Controversies
In 2004, Mal Rodgers was eliminated by the judges during one of the early rounds, despite being an obvious fan-favorite (at this time, two finalists were eliminated each episode: one by the judges, one by fan-vote). At the taping, the audience loudly booed the decision to eliminate Rodgers, continuing after the show had gone off-air. For 2005, the elimination process was altered, completely removing the judges from the equation. The process was again altered in 2006, allowing judges to remove one finalist (two in 2007, back to one in 2008) on the premiere episode only before fans get the chance to vote.

In 2005, finalist Tamika Tyler blamed producers for attempting to influence fans to vote against her, after she was voted off on an early-season episode. Tyler claims that video clips of a confrontation between her and eventual winner Erika Jo concerning the difference in their ages were doctored and taken out of context as they were presented on the show. The show's producers would refute the claims; however, in 2006, the focus of the videos shifted from interactions between finalists to a behind-the-scenes look at each finalist preparing for his or her performance.

During the fifth episode of the 2007 season, no finalist was eliminated. However, host Jewel teased an elimination several times from the beginning of the episode, only to reveal at the very end that the previous week's show experienced "technical difficulties" and the voting results were discarded. Neither USA Network nor Reveille Productions, would comment publicly on the "technical difficulties". Had the show eliminated a finalist that week, the finale episode would have only featured two performers, instead of the usual three.

As stated below and on this page, the winner of season 6 was supposed to perform at the closing ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China, which was also shown on NBC in the U.S. However, that performance did not occur; no reason was ever given for the cancellation.

Hosts
The host for the first two seasons of Nashville Star was entertainment reporter Nancy O'Dell, who also served as a consulting producer. Before the third season (2005), USA Network announced the show would move from Saturday nights to a more desirable prime time slot on Tuesday nights. As a result of the move, O'Dell chose to leave the show due to her hosting commitments at Access Hollywood, which is taped in Los Angeles. Since then, the show has had a different host each year, consisting of hit-making country singers.

Judges
The show has seen a revolving door of judges as well, with recording industry executive Anastasia Brown serving the longest (a three-season stint from 2005–2007). 2008 marked the first time a recording industry executive was not a member of the panel, and also the first time judges co-acted as mentors.

A Weekly guest judges during 2006 mostly included bona fide musicians, but also included comedian Larry the Cable Guy and wrestler John Cena who both appeared in character for promotional consideration.

Season 1 (2003)
Season 1 was broadcast on USA Network and presented by Nancy O'Dell. Judges were country music historian Robert K. Oermann, record label executive Tracy Gershon, and singer/songwriter Charlie Robison.

The standings for 2003 were:

The first winner of Nashville Star, in the spring of 2003, was 41-year-old Buddy Jewell. On the strength of his win, Jewell's self-titled album released via Columbia Records earned him a gold record and two top-five country hits in "Help Pour Out the Rain (Lacey's Song)" and "Sweet Southern Comfort", both at No. 3. With the release of a second album, Times Like These, Jewell saw declining sales and was dropped from the label. That season's runner-up, John Arthur Martinez, has released several independently produced albums, and one under a major banner.

Miranda Lambert finished third. Her debut album, Kerosene, debuted on the Billboard country albums chart at No. 1 upon its 2005 release, and with a platinum certification from the RIAA, it is the best-selling album from a Nashville Star contestant. Her second album, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, is certified platinum too and has produced three more Top 20 hits, one of which ("Gunpowder & Lead") reached No. 7 in 2008. Her third album, Revolution, which is also certified platinum, gave her her first No. 1 "The House That Built Me". At the 2010 Academy of Country Music Awards, Lambert won three awards, including Top Female Vocalist, Video of the Year for 'White Liar' and Album of the Year for 'Revolution'. She has also been named Female Vocalist of the Year at the Academy of Country Music Awards and Country Music Association Awards for seven consecutive years (2010 to 2016). She is widely considered to be the most successful contestant in the history of the show; although Season 4 winner Chris Young has more No. 1 country singles (nine) than Lambert (four), Lambert has more No. 1 country albums (six) than Young (two).

Season 2 (2004)
Nancy O'Dell returned as host. Record label executive Tracy Gershon returned as a judge, joined by radio personality Billy Greenwood and country artists The Warren Brothers. The show was broadcast on USA Network.

The standings for 2004 were:

*No finalist was eliminated on the Week 4 show due to a "technical glitch" during Week 3's show. Nashville Star began its second season on March 6, 2004. In 2004, the winner was 33-year-old Brad Cotter, who enjoyed very limited success after his win. Cotter was one of ten finalists eliminated by the judges on the first episode, but was allowed back into the competition after he was selected by viewers to be the one of those ten saved. The format was changed after the 2004 season and that element of the competition was scrapped.

Cotter won a recording contract with Sony Music on its Epic Records label. His first album, Patient Man, performed poorly, selling less than 140,000 copies. He was subsequently dropped from the roster. Cotter remains on tour opening for other country artists, such as Mark Chesnutt and Restless Heart.

However, runner-up George Canyon (also 33 years old) experienced a result similar to Miranda Lambert. He did not win a record deal from the show and has not achieved success in the U.S., but he has become a country music star in his native Canada, where he was signed by Universal Music and has released three successful albums.

Following the season, third-place finisher Matt Lindahl began appearing in television, radio, billboard, and print advertisements for Purity Dairies, a regional dairy company based in Nashville. In the television and radio ads, Lindahl (along with his band) sings, acts, and plays the washboard - an instrument that he also played on Nashville Star.

In 2007, Lance Miller signed with Warner Bros. Records and appeared on Star to perform his first single.

Sixth-place finisher Brent Keith was a top 36 semi-finalist on the eighth season of American Idol, but was not voted through to the finals.

Season 3 (2005)
Nashville Star began its third season on March 1, 2005. The host was LeAnn Rimes and Cledus T. Judd was co-host, but credited as "Special Correspondent". Sara Evans substituted for Rimes during episodes 7 and 8 due to vocal cord injury. Judges were singer/songwriter Phil Vassar, record label executive Anastasia Brown, and singer/songwriter (and Poison frontman) Bret Michaels.

The standings for 2005 were:

The 2005 winner was 18-year-old Erika Jo from Mount Juliet, Tennessee — the first female and youngest overall winner. Her victory was watched by the show's largest-ever USA Network audience, when over three million people tuned in to see the finale on April 26. It marked the first time the show ranked among the top ten cable shows of the week.

Erika Jo's self-titled album debuted at No. 5 on the country album charts, but quickly fell out of the top ten, selling just over 118,000 copies in the year following its release. The video for the first single, "I Break Things", initially received heavy rotation on CMT and GAC, but the song was largely ignored by country radio and only reached No. 53 on the Billboard Magazine country charts. One subsequent single (a cover of Jessi Colter's 1975 hit "I'm Not Lisa") was released, but it also failed to attract substantial attention. She was later dropped from the Universal South roster. Erika Jo occasionally appeared on the Grand Ole Opry shortly following her victory.

Second-place finisher Jason Meadows released an album 100% Cowboy via the independent Baccerstick label in 2008, and although the album charted, none of its three singles did. Fourth place Jayron Weaver went on to form with Delnora Reed a duo named Blue-Eyed Grass.

Season 4 (2006)
Wynonna was the host of the series and Cowboy Troy was co-host. Two Foot Fred hosts "Small Talk" segment.

Phil Vassar and Anastasia Brown returned as regular judges, with a third seat occupied by guest judges, which included:
 * Premiere (3/14/06) - Big & Rich
 * Week 2 (3/21/06) - comedian Larry the Cable Guy
 * Week 3 (3/28/06) - World Wrestling Entertainment star John Cena
 * Week 4 (4/4/06) - Naomi Judd
 * Week 5 (4/11/06) - David Foster
 * Week 6 (4/18/06) - Patti LaBelle
 * Week 7 (4/25/06) - Scott Weiland & Duff McKagan (of Velvet Revolver)
 * Finale (5/2/06) - Big & Rich

The standings for 2006 were:

The 2006 winner was 20-year-old Chris Young. Nashville Star began its fourth season on March 14, 2006, with a slightly altered set, two new hosts in Wynonna & Cowboy Troy, and only two regular judges. A guest judge occupied the third seat each week. The format remained unaltered, though the length of the season was reduced by one week, and one finalist was eliminated on the season premiere (by judges' decision) to compensate. Two Foot Fred's "Small Talk" segment also made its debut in 2006. The season ended on May 2, 2006, with Young—from nearby Murfreesboro, Tennessee—crowned champion. His self-titled debut album was released on October 3, 2006, and debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard country chart, although its singles both missed Top 40. Young charted in the Top 40 for the first time in 2008 with "Voices", and reached number one in 2009 with "Gettin' You Home (The Black Dress Song)" and "The Man I Want to Be". "Voices" was then re-released in 2010 and also went on to reach number one. Young also received a Grammy nomination in 2016 for "Think of You" with The Voice contestant Cassadee Pope. Sixth-place finisher Kristen McNamara was a top 36 finalist on the eighth season of American Idol, but was not voted into the Top 13. Fourth-place finisher Matt Mason would go on to win the first season of CMT's Next Superstar.

Season 5 (2007)
Jewel hosted the show and Cowboy Troy returned as co-host. Two Foot Fred returned as host of the "Small Talk" segment. Judges included Anastasia Brown, who returned for her third season at the desk. Joining her were country singers Randy Owen (lead singer of Alabama) and Blake Shelton.

The standings for 2007 were:

*No finalist was eliminated on the Week 5 show due to "technical difficulties" during Week 4's show.

The above ten were chosen from over fifty Regional Finalists, selected from local area callbacks and auditions. The Regional Finals were held in Nashville, TN, on November 1-3, 2006, at The Stage.

The 2007 winner of Nashville Star was 29-year-old Angela Hacker from Muscle Shoals, Alabama, who finished just ahead of her younger brother, Zac. It was the first time that siblings had competed, let alone finished in the top two.

The fifth season debuted on USA Network and CMT Canada at 10 pm EST on January 11, 2007. There were several changes to the show, including an earlier start date and a new night. The series moved to January and February, and aired live on Thursdays at 10 pm EST rather than Tuesdays. Jewel replaced Wynonna as host, with Cowboy Troy returning as co-host. The format remained mostly unaltered, except the judges eliminated two finalists (one male, one female) on the premiere episode. Sonic Drive-In was the presenting sponsor for 2007. The season finale aired on March 1, 2007.

Following the season, Angela Hacker's album The Winner Is Angela Hacker was released on Warner Bros. Records. The album, composed of cover song demos she recorded while on the show, was only available at Walmart. She also appeared on Cowboy Troy's Black in the Saddle album, singing guest vocals on "Hick Chick". She left Warner in August 2008 without releasing any singles.

Fifth-placer Whitney Duncan, who had previously charted the duet "My World Is Over" with Kenny Rogers in 2004, signed to Warner as well, charting with "When I Said I Would". Her debut album, Right Road Now, was first slated for release in mid-2008, but was delayed repeatedly due to poor performance of its singles. It was eventually released in early 2010, and Duncan soon after parted ways with the record label. Duncan would later compete in the CBS reality series Survivor: South Pacific and finished in 9th place. She would later participate in another CBS reality series The Amazing Race 25, with her fellow Survivor contestant and fiancé Keith Tollefson; they finished in 8th place.

Kacey Musgraves, who finished in seventh place, signed with Mercury Records in 2012 and released her debut single, "Merry Go 'Round", which was a top 20 country hit. Her major-label debut, Same Trailer Different Park, was released on March 19, 2013. It reached number 1 on the country albums chart and number 2 on the Billboard 200, and won the Academy of Country Music award for Album of the Year, and also the Grammy Award for Best Country Album. Her second major-label release, Pageant Material (2015), was nominated for Best Country Album at the 58th Grammy Awards. Her first Christmas-themed album, A Very Kacey Christmas, was released on October 28, 2016. Her fourth studio album, Golden Hour (2018), won four Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Best Country Album.

Season 6 (2008)
In Season 6, the show moved from USA Network to NBC. The move to NBC (and E! in Canada) came with a few format changes to the show, including the first time that auditions were shown on-air. Also, the on-screen judges presided over the initial auditions for the first time. The minimum age was lowered to 16 (from 18), and duos and trios were allowed to compete. The field was expanded to twelve finalists (groups counted as one finalist), the largest field since Season 1. The show also received a new set, opening, and theme song. Beginning with the second episode, the show was broadcast in HDTV for the first time; the premiere retained the NTSC format.

Season 6 of Nashville Star premiered on NBC on June 9, 2008, at 9PM Eastern/Pacific. Its heavily-promoted first broadcast, a two-hour premiere, earned a 2.2 rating, its first hour finishing fourth and its second hour finishing second among the four major networks. Despite the relatively low ratings for a network show, the premiere attracted the most viewers for a single episode in the show's history, outdrawing all episodes broadcast on USA Network. The second episode lost 18 percent of its debut audience. The show during season 6 placed fourth in the first hour and placed second overall in the second hour of the broadcast. Billy Ray Cyrus hosted the sixth season. The winner of the first-ever NBC season was 32-year-old Melissa Lawson.

The finalists for 2008 were:

The sixth season featured judges Jeffrey Steele, John Rich, and Jewel (who hosted Season Five). For the first time, the judges also acted as mentors to the finalists, and Rich produced songs later included in the EP, United We Stand. The winner was promised a recording contract with Warner Bros. Records, a Toyota Tundra pickup truck, and the opportunity to perform at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

The sixth season also brought Nashville Star to the American CMT network for the first time. The cable network rebroadcast each episode the following Friday. Beginning with the show's second episode, CMT's Katie Cook joined the show as a correspondent.

For the first time in the show's history, a companion radio show was developed to complement the television program. Nashville Star Radio debuted each Thursday evening on XM's "Highway 16". NSR featured the week's performances from the television show, as well as exclusive in-studio performances and interviews with the finalists and judges.

AT&T became a major sponsor of the show, placing their logo on screen with each finalist's call-in vote line. AT&T sponsored the same service on American Idol. Also, Toyota replaced Chevrolet as a sponsor, and offered its signature Tundra pickup as a prize to the winner.

Guest Performers for the 2008 season included Taylor Swift, Trace Adkins, Danity Kane, and Blake Shelton.

Thirty-two-year-old Melissa Lawson won. Lawson had made it to the Top 75 on season 4 of American Idol. She released a single "What If It All Goes Right" that charted at No. 43 on the US Country charts and No. 79 on the general US chart. Second-placed Gabe Garcia, went on to form the Gabe Garcia Band.

Coffey Anderson (also written Cofféy Anderson), a Los Angeles, California, resident but originally from Bangs, Texas, finished 4th. He had briefly been a contestant on season 2 of American Idol in 2003, making it to the Hollywood round. Coffey Anderson has released four albums: Southern Man, Me and You and the spiritual Christian albums Inspiration Vol. 1 and Worship Unplugged 1. He enjoys huge popularity online, particularly with his compositions "Memphis", "Southern Man", "Rock 'n Roll Sally", "All Ye", "Let me Love You" and "Can I". He also has his own indie label Coffey Entertainment, LLC.

Third-placer Shawn Mayer is currently releasing songs digitally, and fifth-placer Ashlee Hewitt is currently songwriting and working with close friend and fellow country singer Katie Armiger.

With the release of "Teddy Gentry's Best New Nashville" through the Cracker Barrel music program in all 601 Cracker Barrel locations in 42 states, sixth-placer Laura Fedor becomes the first-ever non-major-label-signed artist to be allowed in their music program, and the only artist besides the winner to have a prominent national release on a respected label.

title: Nashville Star


text:
Sigma Octantis

Sigma Octantis is a solitary star in the Octans constellation that forms the pole star of the Southern Hemisphere. Its name is also written as σ Octantis, abbreviated as Sigma Oct or σ Oct, and it is officially named Polaris Australis. The star is positioned one degree away from the southern celestial pole of the Southern Hemisphere, lying in nearly opposite direction to the North Star on the celestial sphere.

Located approximately $0.86$ from Earth, it is classified as a subgiant with a spectral type of F0 IV. Sigma Octantis has an apparent magnitude of 5.5, but is slightly variable and is classified as a Delta Scuti variable.

Nomenclature

σ Octantis (Latinised to Sigma Octantis) is the star's Bayer designation.

As the southern hemisphere's pole star it bore the name Polaris Australis, first applied in the 1700s. In 2016, the IAU organized a Working Group on Star Names (WGSN) to catalog and standardize proper names for stars. The WGSN approved the name Polaris Australis for this star on 5 September 2017 and it is now so included in the List of IAU-approved Star Names. It is the southernmost named star.

Properties
With a spectral class of F0IV, Sigma Octantis appears to be a subgiant, although it has also been classified as F0III. Evolutionary models place it at the very end of its main sequence life with an age of about 900 million years. It has expanded somewhat to a size 4.4 that of the Sun and emits 44 times as much electromagnetic radiation from its photosphere at an effective temperature of $7,415$.

Sigma Octantis is a Delta Scuti variable, varying by about 0.03 magnitudes every 2.33 hours. It is thought to pulsate only in the fundamental mode.

Southern pole star
Sigma Octantis is the current southern pole star, whose counterpart is Polaris, the current North Star. To an observer in the southern hemisphere, Sigma Octantis appears almost motionless and all the other stars in the Southern sky appear to rotate around it. It is part of a small "half hexagon" shape. It is slightly more than a degree away from the true south pole, and the south celestial pole is moving away from it due to precession of the equinoxes.

At magnitude +5.42, Sigma Octantis is barely visible to the naked eye, making it unusable for navigation, especially by comparison with the much brighter and more easily visible Polaris. Because of this, the constellation Crux is often preferred for determining the position of the South Celestial Pole. Once Sigma Octantis' approximate position has been determined, either by the major stars in Octans or using the Southern Cross (Crux) method, it can be positively verified using an asterism: Sigma, Chi, Tau, and Upsilon Octantis are all stars of around magnitude 5.6, and form the distinctive shape of a trapezoid.

In astrometrics
Sigma Octantis was used as a reference to measure the magnitudes of stars in the southern hemisphere for the 1908 Revised Harvard Photometry catalogue. The Pole Star and Lambda Ursae Minoris were used for the northern hemisphere. It was then noted that "Neither of these stars appears to vary perceptibly" but that, due to the procedures used "if they did, the variation would have no effect on the final measures."

In culture
Sigma Octantis is the dimmest star to be represented on a national flag. It appears on the flag of Brazil, symbolising the Brazilian Federal District.

title: Sigma Octantis