text:
Racemization

In chemistry, racemization is a conversion, by heat or by chemical reaction, of an optically active compound into a racemic (optically inactive) form. This creates a 1:1 molar ratio of enantiomers and is referred to as a racemic mixture (i.e. contain equal amount of (+) and (−) forms). Plus and minus forms are called Dextrorotation and levorotation. The D and L enantiomers are present in equal quantities, the resulting sample is described as a racemic mixture or a racemate. Racemization can proceed through a number of different mechanisms, and it has particular significance in pharmacology as different enantiomers may have different pharmaceutical effects.

Stereochemistry
Chiral molecules have two forms (at each point of asymmetry), which differ in their optical characteristics: The levorotatory form (the (−)-form) will rotate counter-clockwise on the plane of polarization of a beam of light, whereas the dextrorotatory form (the (+)-form) will rotate clockwise on the plane of polarization of a beam of light. The two forms, which are non-superposable when rotated in 3-dimensional space, are said to be enantiomers. The notation is not to be confused with D and L naming of molecules which refers to the similarity in structure to D -glyceraldehyde and L -glyceraldehyde. Also, (R)- and (S)- refer to the chemical structure of the molecule based on Cahn–Ingold–Prelog priority rules of naming rather than rotation of light. R/S notation is the primary notation used for +/- now because D and L notation are used primarily for sugars and amino acids.

Racemization occurs when one pure form of an enantiomer is converted into equal proportion of both enantiomers, forming a racemate. When there are both equal numbers of dextrorotating and levorotating molecules, the net optical rotation of a racemate is zero. Enantiomers should also be distinguished from diastereomers which are a type of stereoisomer that have different molecular structures around a stereocenter and are not mirror images.

Partial to complete racemization of stereochemistry in solutions are a result of SN1 mechanisms. However, when complete inversion of stereochemistry configuration occurs in a substitution reaction, an SN2 reaction is responsible.

Physical properties
In the solid state, racemic mixtures may have different physical properties from either of the pure enantiomers because of the differential intermolecular interactions (see Biological Significance section). The change from a pure enantiomer to a racemate can change its density, melting point, solubility, heat of fusion, refractive index, and its various spectra. Crystallization of a racemate can result in separate (+) and (−) forms, or a single racemic compound. However, in liquid and gaseous states, racemic mixtures will behave with physical properties that are identical, or near identical, to their pure enantiomers.

Biological significance
In general, most biochemical reactions are stereoselective, so only one stereoisomer will produce the intended product while the other simply does not participate or can cause side-effects. Of note, the L form of amino acids and the D form of sugars (primarily glucose) are usually the biologically reactive form. This is due to the fact that many biological molecules are chiral and thus the reactions between specific enantiomers produce pure stereoisomers. Also notable is the fact that all amino acid residues exist in the L form. However, bacteria produce D -amino acid residues that polymerize into short polypeptides which can be found in bacterial cell walls. These polypeptides are less digestible by peptidases and are synthesized by bacterial enzymes instead of mRNA translation which would normally produce L -amino acids.

The stereoselective nature of most biochemical reactions meant that different enantiomers of a chemical may have different properties and effects on a person. Many psychotropic drugs show differing activity or efficacy between isomers, e.g. amphetamine is often dispensed as racemic salts while the more active dextroamphetamine is reserved for refractory cases or more severe indications; another example is methadone, of which one isomer has activity as an opioid agonist and the other as an NMDA antagonist.

Racemization of pharmaceutical drugs can occur in vivo. Thalidomide as the (R) enantiomer is effective against morning sickness, while the (S) enantiomer is teratogenic, causing birth defects when taken in the first trimester of pregnancy. If only one enantiomer is administered to a human subject, both forms may be found later in the blood serum. The drug is therefore not considered safe for use by women of child-bearing age, and while it has other uses, its use is tightly controlled. Thalidomide can be used to treat multiple myeloma.

Another commonly used drug is ibuprofen which is only anti-inflammatory as one enantiomer while the other is biologically inert. Likewise, the (S) stereoisomer is much more reactive than the (R) enantiomer in citalopram (Celexa), an antidepressant which inhibits serotonin reuptake, is active. The configurational stability of a drug is therefore an area of interest in pharmaceutical research. The production and analysis of enantiomers in the pharmaceutical industry is studied in the field of chiral organic synthesis.

Formation of racemic mixtures
Racemization can be achieved by simply mixing equal quantities of two pure enantiomers. Racemization can also occur in a chemical interconversion. For example, when (R)-3-phenyl-2-butanone is dissolved in aqueous ethanol that contains NaOH or HCl, a racemate is formed. The racemization occurs by way of an intermediate enol form in which the former stereocenter becomes planar and hence achiral. An incoming group can approach from either side of the plane, so there is an equal probability that protonation back to the chiral ketone will produce either an R or an S form, resulting in a racemate.

Racemization can occur through some of the following processes:
 * Substitution reactions that proceed through a free carbocation intermediate, such as unimolecular substitution reactions, lead to non-stereospecific addition of substituents which results in racemization.
 * Although unimolecular elimination reactions also proceed through a carbocation, they do not result in a chiral center. They result instead in a set of geometric isomers in which trans/cis (E/Z) forms are produced, rather than racemates.
 * In a unimolecular aliphatic electrophilic substitution reaction, if the carbanion is planar or if it cannot maintain a pyramidal structure, then racemization should occur, though not always.
 * In a free radical substitution reaction, if the formation of the free radical takes place at a chiral carbon, then racemization is almost always observed.

The rate of racemization (from L -forms to a mixture of L -forms and D -forms) has been used as a way of dating biological samples in tissues with slow rates of turnover, forensic samples, and fossils in geological deposits. This technique is known as amino acid dating.

Discovery of optical activity
In 1843, Louis Pasteur discovered optical activity in paratartaric, or racemic, acid found in grape wine. He was able to separate two enantiomer crystals that rotated polarized light in opposite directions.

title: Racemization


text:
Talk:Joseph-Armand Bombardier

Self taught
All the sources I have read on Joseph-Armand Bombardier indicate that he was entirely well and self-taught! If he was a doctor I would like to know what kind, at the very least!! AlainV 02:49, 2004 Mar 11 (UTC)

 * Oh. Maybe I'm wrong then.  My father told me he was a country doctor who found it hard to make housecalls in the snow so he invented the skiddoo.  But then again, my father gets a lot of things confused.  Sorry about that.  moink 02:58, 11 Mar 2004 (UTC)

Pronunciation of Armand Bombardier
Dumb, uni-lingual American here. Heard the name of the company founded by Mr. Bombardier pronounced on a national network as "bom-ba-DEER." Is this the correct pronunciation?

 * umm nope, i am from canada, and its pronounced "bom-bar-DI-ER" some of the times ppl say with with silent R at the end and a strong R at the middle so.. "bom-baR-DI-EE"

The above two statements regarding the pronunciation are NOT accurate. I have read his biography and I am related to Bombardier. Bom‧bar‧dier  [bom-bahr-dyey] Is the correct pronunciation. (I also have a last name of the same origin). The "dier" in French is pronounced "dyey". The alternate pronunciation is [bom-ber-deer]

 * Hahahahahahaha, coming from a French-Canadian background I couldn't help but laugh at this. Think of the "ier" as 'ee' then 'é', as in Bom - bar - dee - ay.  Sandwiches99 23:22, 7 November 2007 (UTC)

Corporate propaganda
So... in plain he seems to have been a self-taught engineer who hasn't invented something that wasn't done before - so much for his 'dream' of making the vehicle that floats on snow - but who had the inspiration and the lack of scrupuls to get subventions and merge with companies that were actually making something. And the new and improved company doesn't get a good/innovative rating anywhere I look. Just problems with subventions, bad manufacturing, bad design. I would not doubt if there would be problems with the intelectual piracy as well. 82.240.243.35 00:26, 28 October 2007 (UTC)

 * No, you're right, they're just part of the Fortune Global 500, but hey, what does that matter, right? As for the man himself, he created innovations, not inventions.  He expanded on ideas that already existed in order to tackle the issues in the area he lived in, then expanded THAT into a larger business in order to deal with a larger consumer base and therefore more customers.  As for intellectual piracy, what the hell are you talking about?  When did Bombardier run into problems regarding intellectual property laws?  Sandwiches99 23:26, 7 November 2007 (UTC)hi

Bombardier
Just a comment, this page is very hard to read. It is a word wall I guess. I am thinking about adding sections to make it easier to read.--Gordonrox24 (talk) 21:48, 15 February 2009 (UTC)

It also has Very little information on his personal life--Gordonrox24 (talk) 23:55, 15 February 2009 (UTC)

I have copy and pasted this whole page into a user subpage. I will fix it up, then see what people think.--Gordonrox24 (talk) 20:31, 16 February 2009 (UTC)

Here is my subpage http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Gordonrox24/Joseph-Armand_Bombardier--Gordonrox24 (talk) 23:52, 17 February 2009 (UTC)

Proposed Deletion
I had to Propose this for deletion. I don't have the extra time to clean it up, and nobody else is willing. No references or sources. Maybe once it is gone somebody will care.--gordonrox24 (talk) 23:03, 2 April 2009 (UTC)
 * With all due respect, we don't delete articles because you don't have time to improve them. And we don't propose deletion of articles on significant historical figures to provoke somebody to care about them. That's called abuse of process. Franamax (talk) 06:25, 3 April 2009 (UTC)

 * It's just zealous desperation. No malice is intended, he just didn't know what else to do. - BillCJ (talk) 08:53, 3 April 2009 (UTC)

 * None at all, but this article IS  worthy of deletion if it staying in it's current state. Something has to be done and it seems nobody is willing to do it.--gordonrox24 (talk) 20:19, 3 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Take it to AFD then or get a book from the library and improve it yourself. It looks fine to me, everything in there is uncontroversial facts which accord well with what I know of Bombardier. It now has references and further reading.
 * We appreciate your enthusiasm and welcome new editors, but maybe you should put more than 49 mainspace edits under your belt before trying to get articles deleted because you think there's something wrong with them. Reviewing your edits in fact, have you made more than one or two actual contributions to the encyclopedia? I'm not trying to be mean, but you really shouldn't be insisting that other people do things when you're not willing to do them yourself. Franamax (talk) 22:12, 3 April 2009 (UTC)

 * I know I am not willing to fix it myself, as I said that previously. It also seems that nobody else (Since Decemeber) is willing to add anything constructive either. You should be more open to the fact that not only mainspace edits are important. I have spent most of my time on Wikipedia trying to get an article up and running for a very notable online game. It is userfied, so obviously it is not a mainspace edit. I have very little time to do stuff like clean up this page. One reference for such an important figure in Canadian History is not sufficient.--gordonrox24 (talk) 22:40, 3 April 2009 (UTC)
 * We all agree that Bombardier was an important figure in Canadian history, so proposing a deletion because there are not enough citation is "kind of" disruptive. I added a lot of citations, but even if I agree that this article could be improved (it still can), we can not always take immediately the time to improve an existing article just because someone has put a deletion tag. Hervegirod (talk) 11:45, 4 April 2009 (UTC)

I understand that. You can very easily remove the tag, or add the hangon tag and volia, the article is still up and running. I am now very happy with the article. I did not plan to cause all of this trouble, I am happy I put the tag up. Look at the drastic improvements made. I would like to thank everybody that added citations, sections, further reading, and new references very much.--gordonrox24 (talk) 12:36, 4 April 2009 (UTC)

 * I removed the prod. From your edit comment, I was thinking about citing you for vandalism through prod abuse. It was clearly inappropriate way to use deletion. Why didn't you just post a message to the various wikiprojects instead? 76.66.193.69 (talk) 10:59, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

I fail to see how it was inappropriate, as it was a completely unreferenced or cited article. Is just so happened that by placing the PROD tag, the article got fixed.--gordonrox24 (talk) 12:55, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

 * Did you read the policy about PROD usage? If not, I suggest you do so, because if you continue using PROD in this manner, someone will ban you sooner or later for deletion template abuse. 76.66.193.69 (talk) 07:21, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

 * That the article got fixed is not necessarily because you prodded it, since it came a long time after I deleted the PROD. It's much more likely that the people I informed on the relevant wikiprojects read my notice instead. 76.66.193.69 (talk) 07:26, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Is proposing an article with no sources references or any other citations Template abuse? No. It is informing people that an article is not in a good enough state to be allowed on Wikipedia.--gordonrox24 (talk) 22:20, 7 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Yes, proposing an article for deletion because you can't be bothered to improve it, attempting to force other people to do work on your own five-day timetable (better yet, trying a speedy tag first), tagging articles that other people may not be watching at the moment and getting them automatically deleted - that could well be considered template abuse. The danger is that you are ranging far and wide doing this, damaging the content of the encyclopedia. As I asked you on your talk page Gordonrox, have you ever actually made an edit of your own that improved an article? Franamax (talk) 05:48, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

I find it very naive of you to judge me on one edit. The article is fixed, I have asked for a review to give it a rating.--gordonrox24 (talk) 22:16, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

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title: Talk:Joseph-Armand Bombardier


text:
British Forces Germany

British Forces Germany (BFG) was the generic name for the three services of the British Armed Forces, made up of service personnel, UK Civil Servants, and dependents (family members), based in Germany. It was established following the Second World War, the largest parts of it becoming known as the British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) and RAF Germany (RAFG). Both components had the mission of defending West Germany and remained there for the rest of the Cold War.

It was the largest concentration of British armed forces permanently stationed outside the United Kingdom. With the end of the Cold War, and the Options for Change defence review in the early 1990s, BFG as a whole was considerably reduced, with the British presence centred on the 1st Armoured Division, and supporting elements.

Following the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review, the permanent deployment in Germany ended in 2020. This was after British forces personnel were scaled down over several years, with 19,100 in April 2010, and 2,850 in April 2019. However, around 185 British Army personnel and 60 Ministry of Defence civilians will stay in Germany beyond 2020.

The remaining presence in Germany is known as British Army Germany.

History
First established following the Second World War, the forces grew during the Cold War, and consisted, by the early 1980s, of I (BR) Corps made up of four divisions; 1st Armoured Division, 2nd Armoured Division, 3rd Armoured Division and the 4th Armoured Division.

Disbandment of the British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) and Royal Air Force Germany (RAFG) in 1994, following the end of the Cold War and the Options for Change defence review in the early 1990s, reduced the strength of the British Armed Forces in Germany by almost 30,000 with just one division (1st Armoured) remaining by the late 1990s, concentrated in North Rhine-Westphalia. The British presence was estimated to have been contributing 1.5 billion euros annually to the German economy in 2004. Following a further spending review, one brigade was withdrawn and Osnabrück Garrison closed in 2009.

Administrative support for British service personnel in Germany and across continental Europe was delegated to United Kingdom Support Command (Germany), (UKSC(G)). The four Army garrisons in Germany were under the direct administrative control of UKSC(G). The General Officer Commanding UKSC(G) also functioned as head of the British Forces Liaison Organisation (Germany), which was responsible for liaising and maintaining relations with German civil authorities.

Under the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review, it was decided that British military units would cease to be permanently deployed in Germany by the end of 2019. This led to a scaling down of the British military presence, and a restructuring of command and support structures.

HQ British Forces Germany was formed in January 2012, replacing the UKSC(G) and the Germany Support Group (GSG). Rhine Garrison, which principally comprised HQ British Forces Germany in the Rheindahlen Military Complex and Elmpt Station (formerly RAF Bruggen), also reduced in size; the HQ moved to Bielefeld in July 2013 and other units returned to the UK. The two central garrisons - Gütersloh and Paderborn - combined to form a single 'super garrison' called Westfalen Garrison in April 2014.

With the departure of Major General John Henderson in March 2015, the Commanding Officer of British Forces Germany became a brigadier's post, with Brigadier Ian Bell assuming command.

In autumn 2019, British Forces Germany effectively closed, with the last military base handed back to the German Bundeswehr in February 2020. However, some training will still be undertaken in Germany with regard to NATO capability.

Off-duty life
The British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS) radio services were widely available on FM across north-western Germany.

The British Army Germany rugby union team regularly played games against emerging rugby nations like Belgium, Denmark, Netherlands, Germany and Luxembourg.

During the height of "the Troubles" in Northern Ireland, the IRA targeted personnel in Germany between 1988 and 1990. The attacks resulted in the deaths of nine people, including three civilians, and many wounded. As a result, vehicles owned by personnel ceased to have distinct registration plates, which had made them easily identifiable.

Commanders
Commanders have included: General Officer Commanding United Kingdom Support Command (Germany) General Officer Commanding British Forces Germany Commander British Forces Germany Commander British Army Germany
 * 1994–1995 Major-General Scott Grant
 * 1995–1997 Major-General Christopher Drewry
 * 1997–2001 Major-General Christopher Elliott
 * 2001–2003 Major-General John Moore-Bick
 * 2003–2006 Major-General David Bill
 * 2006–2009 Major-General Mungo Melvin
 * 2009–2012 Major-General Nicholas Caplin
 * 2012–2015 Major-General John Henderson
 * 2015–2018 Brigadier Ian Bell
 * 2018–2019 Brigadier Richard Clements
 * 2019–2023 Colonel Tim Hill
 * 2023 Colonel Mike Foster-Brown

title: British Forces Germany


text:
USS Sellers

USS Sellers (DDG-11) was a Charles F. Adams-class guided-missile destroyer built for the United States Navy in the 1950s.

Design and description
The Charles F. Addams class was based on a stretched Forrest Sherman-class destroyer hull modified to accommodate smaller RIM-24 Tartar surface-to-air missiles and all their associated equipment. The ships had an overall length of 437 ft, a beam of 47 ft and a deep draft of 15 ft. They displaced 4526 LT at full load. Their crew consisted of 18 officers and 320 enlisted men.

The ships were equipped with two geared steam turbines, each driving one propeller shaft, using steam provided by four water-tube boilers. The turbines were intended to produce 70000 shp to reach the designed speed of 33 kn. The Adams class had a range of 4500 nmi at a speed of 20 kn.

The Charles F. Adams-class ships were armed with two 5"/54 caliber Mark 42 guns, one forward and one aft of the superstructure. They were fitted with an eight-round ASROC launcher between the funnels. Close-range anti-submarine defense was provided by two triple sets of 12.75 in Mk 32 torpedo tubes. The primary armament of the ships was the Tartar surface-to-air missile designed to defend the carrier battle group. They were fired via the dual-arm Mk 11 missile launcher and the ships stowed a total of 42 missiles for the launcher.

Construction and career
Sellers, named for Admiral David F. Sellers, was laid down by the Bath Iron Works at Bath in Maine on 3 August 1959, launched on 9 September 1960 by Mrs. Hugh Scott and commissioned on 28 October 1961. Sellers was decommissioned on 31 October 1989, stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 20 November 1992 and sold on 25 July 1995.

As of 2005, no other U.S. Navy ship has been named Sellers.

title: USS Sellers


text: User:Richard cocks

title: User:Richard cocks


text:
Booneville

Booneville is the name of some places in the United States:

 * Booneville, Arkansas
 * Booneville, Iowa
 * Booneville, Kentucky
 * Booneville, Mississippi
 * Booneville, Missouri
 * Booneville, Tennessee
 * Booneville, New York
 * Booneville Channel (Oregon), a Benton County, Oregon channel to the Willamette River

title: Booneville


text:
Ground Force

Ground Force is a British garden makeover television series originally broadcast by the BBC between 1997 and 2005. The series was originally hosted by Alan Titchmarsh, Charlie Dimmock and Tommy Walsh.

Production
The series was created by Peter Bazalgette and was first broadcast on 19 September 1997 on BBC Two. In each episode, a team of gardeners make over the garden of an individual who has been nominated by a member of their family or a friend. Whilst that individual is away, the team, assisted by friends and family, make over the garden over two days, and surprise the individual on their return. The team was led by Alan Titchmarsh, presenter of Pebble Mill at One and Gardeners' World, gardener Charlie Dimmock, builder Tommy Walsh and his assistant Will Shanahan. Dimmock met the producer–director of the series five years previously when she built a pond for the Meridian series Grass Roots,. Walsh was invited to take part after completing work on the executive producer's garden.

The series moved to BBC One for the second series. Titchmarsh left in 2002. Kirsty King joined the team after Titchmarsh left.

A number of new five-minute segments were filmed for Ground Force Revisited and appended onto repeats of earlier episodes, where Dimmock and Walsh revisited the garden concerned to surprise the owners and see how the gardens had developed.

The series was credited with helping the increase in sales of garden decking in the late 1990s and early 2000s due to its use during the series. Retailer B&Q had sales rise from £5,000 in 1997 to £16 million in 2001.

The series was cancelled in 2005. Describing its cancellation, BBC Director-General Mark Thompson said that the series was "reaching the end of its natural life" and that "the public do get very cross when they see the BBC flogging a dead horse".

At its peak, the series attracted 12 million viewers. Repeats of Ground Force are currently shown on Home.

Music
The theme music for the series was performed by the Black Dyke Band, and included the following pieces:
 * Ground Force Theme — played during the show's opening and closing.
 * The Titchmarsh Warbler — a fast tempo piece usually played during the rush to complete the garden.
 * Lament of the Dandelion — played near the end of the show as Titchmarsh surveyed the completed garden.

Specials
The team worked on a number of other special projects, including:
 * a garden in memory of TV presenter Jill Dando in her home town of Weston-super-Mare
 * the New York Restoration Project garden near Ground Zero in New York, for singer Bette Midler
 * an Old Servicemen's Home garden in Jamaica
 * a Children's Home garden in New Delhi, India
 * the home of former President of South Africa, Nelson Mandela

The Ground Force team's final episode was aired in July 2005. It took place in the forecourt of the British Museum in London, where the team designed and created the Africa Garden as part of the Africa 05 celebration, the biggest celebration of African culture organised in the UK. The design of the garden features temperate, tropical and desert zones.

International versions
A New Zealand version of Ground Force aired on TV One from 1998 to 2003. It was titled Firth Ground Force, named after a local concrete and masonry company.

In 2000, the producers sought legal advice after accusing the Nine Network in Australia of producing a "carbon copy" of Ground Force entitled Backyard Blitz. A legitimate Australian version of Ground Force was already in production, and aired shortly after on the Seven Network. While this version of Ground Force was short lived, Backyard Blitz continued on until 2007.

Ground Force America is the American version, presented by Dimmock and Walsh. It began airing in 2003 on BBC America, and it was the channel's first original production. The channel had been airing the UK version since 1999.

Top Gear and Ground Force Crossover 2008
On 14 March 2008, Top Gear "resurrected" Ground Force in a Sport Relief special called Top Ground Gear Force where the presenters of Top Gear conducted a Ground Force style show on Sir Steve Redgrave's garden, who was livid at the intrusion.

Original series
97 episodes of Ground Force were produced and shown (82 episodes comprising Series 1- 12 plus 15 Specials), as well as an additional 12 episodes that make up Ground Force America:

title: Ground Force


text:
NAIA independent schools

NAIA independent schools are four-year institutional members of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) that do not have formal conference affiliations. NAIA schools that are not members of any other athletic conference are members of the Continental Athletic Conference (CAC), formerly the Association of Independent Institutions (AII), which provides member services to the institution and allows members to compete in postseason competition. The CAC has one member institution in Canada's British Columbia. It provides services to the member institutions that are not fitting in any other NAIA conference and allows members to compete in postseason competition. The AII renamed itself the Continental Athletic Conference at the end of June 2021, citing the need to identify as a proper conference.

Chronological timeline

 * 2008 – The Association of Independent Institutions (AII) was founded by a select group of independent universities and colleges that do not have formal conference affiliations and provide member services to the institutions and allows them to compete in postseason competition. Charter members included the University of Alberta, Allen University, Ave Maria University, Brescia University, the University of British Columbia, Crichton College (later Victory University), California State University San Marcos (Cal State–San Marcos), Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University at Arizona (Embry–Riddle at Arizona), Fisk University, Holy Cross College (Indiana), the University of Houston–Victoria (UHV), Indiana University Northwest (Indiana–Northwest), Johnson & Wales University–Denver, Johnson & Wales University–North Miami, Kentucky Christian University, Lambuth University, Life University, Louisiana State University at Alexandria, Marygrove College, Morris College, Mountain State University, Our Lady of the Lake University, Park University, Patten University, Philander Smith College (now Philander Smith University), the University of Regina, the College of Santa Fe, Simon Fraser University, Soka University of America, Southeastern University of Florida, Southern Virginia University, Southwestern College of Arizona (now Arizona Christian University), the University of St. Thomas of Texas, the State University of New York at Delhi (SUNY Delhi), Talladega College, Thomas University, the University of Victoria, Voorhees College (now Voorhees University), and Walla Walla University beginning in the 2008–09 academic year. Out of those AII member institutions during that time, only three competed in other athletic conferences for other sports as their primary home: Brescia and Mountain State for the Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (KIAC), and Park for the Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference (MCAC).
 * 2009 – Nine institutions left the AII, seven to join their respective new home primary conferences: Ave Maria, Johnson & Wales–Miami and Southeastern (Fla.) to join the Sun Conference, Brescia's basketball teams to join the rest of its athletics program in the KIAC, Holy Cross (Ind.) to join the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC), Our Lady of the Lake to join the Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC), and Park to join the American Midwest Conference, all effective after the 2008–09 academic year. The eight and ninth, Santa Fe and Victory, ceased operations.
 * 2009 – Northern New Mexico College, Ohio Dominican University, and Truett McConnell College (now Truett McConnell University) joined the AII in the 2009–10 academic year.
 * 2010 – Four institutions left the AII to join their respective new home primary conferences: Alberta to realign its athletics program to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS), Fisk to join the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC), Ohio Dominican to join the NCAA Division II ranks and the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC), and Truett McConnell to join the Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC), all effective after the 2009–10 academic year.
 * 2010 – Benedictine University at Springfield, Central Baptist College, Lourdes College (now Lourdes University), and Warren Wilson College joined the AII in the 2010–11 academic year.
 * 2011 – Nine institutions left the AII, eight to join their respective new home primary conferences: Philander Smith and Talladega to join the GCAC, Regina to realign its athletics program to the CIS, Simon Fraser to realign its athletics program to the NCAA Division II ranks and the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC), St. Thomas (Tex.) to the RRAC, Benedictine–Springfield to join the American Midwest, Central Baptist to join the MCAC, and Lourdes to join the Wolverine–Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC), all effective after the 2010–11 academic year. The ninth, Lambuth, ceased operations.
 * 2011 – Dakota State University, Dickinson State University, the University of Jamestown, La Sierra University, Lawrence Technological University (Lawrence Tech), Marymount College (later Marymount California University), Mayville State University, Rochester College (now Rochester Christian University), the Atlanta campus of the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD Atlanta), and Valley City State University joined the AII in the 2011–12 academic year.
 * 2012 – 13 institutions left the AII, 11 to join their respective new home primary conferences: Embry–Riddle at Arizona, Marymount (Cal.) and Soka to join the California Pacific Conference (Cal Pac), Life to join the TranSouth Athletic Conference (TSAC or TranSouth), Marygrove and Lawrence Tech to join the WHAC, Southern Virginia and Warren Wilson to realign within the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) [with Southern Virginia later applying to join the NCAA Division III ranks in the 2013–14 academic year], Arizona Christian to join the Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC), Thomas (Ga.) to join the Sun Conference, Dickinson State to join the Frontier Conference, and SCAD Atlanta to join the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC), all effective after the 2011–12 academic year. The twelfth and thirteenth, Mountain State and Patten, ceased operations.
 * 2012 – Ashford University, Fisher College, the West Virginia Institute of Technology (WVU Tech), Wilberforce University, Georgia Gwinnett College, Indiana University Kokomo (Indiana–Kokomo), and Lindenwood University–Belleville joined the AII in the 2012–13 academic year.
 * 2013 – Six institutions left the AII to join their respective new home primary conferences: Voorhees to join the GCAC, Dakota State, Jamestown, Mayville State and Valley City State to join the newly-created North Star Athletic Association (NSAA), and Indiana–Kokomo to join the KIAC, all effective after the 2012–13 academic year.
 * 2013 – Dalton State College and the University of Antelope Valley joined the AII (with Life re-joining after one season in the recently-defunct TranSouth) in the 2013–14 academic year.
 * 2014 – Three institutions left the AII to join their respective new home primary conferences: Life to join the Mid-South Conference, LSU–Alexandria to join the RRAC, and Dalton State to join the SSAC, all effective after the 2013–14 academic year.
 * 2014 – Texas A&M University–Texarkana, Lincoln Christian University, Washington Adventist University, University of Winnipeg, and Trinity Lutheran College joined the AII in the 2014–15 academic year.
 * 2015 – Four institutions left the AII to join their respective new home primary conferences: Cal State–San Marcos to join the NCAA Division II ranks and the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA), Houston–Victoria to the RRAC, Walla Walla to the Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC), and Antelope Valley to join the Cal Pac, all effective after the 2014–15 academic year.
 * 2015 – Central Christian College of Kansas, Clarke University, the College of the Ozarks (CofO), Governors State University, Haskell Indian Nations University, Mount Mercy University, York College of Nebraska (now York University of Nebraska), and Providence Christian College joined the AII in the 2015–16 academic year. Out of those AII member institutions during that time, only one competed in other athletic conferences for other sports as their primary home: Providence Christian for the Cal Pac.
 * 2016 – Eight institutions left the AII, six to join their respective new home primary conferences: Allen to the AAC, Texas A&M–Texarkana to join the RRAC, Winnipeg to realign its athletics program to the CIS, Clarke and Mount Mercy to join the Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC), and York (Neb.) to join the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference, all effective after the 2015–16 academic year. The seventh and eighth, Ashford and Trinity Lutheran, ceased operations.
 * 2016 – Crowley's Ridge College, Silver Lake College of the Holy Family (later Holy Family College), Stillman College, and the University of the Virgin Islands joined the AII in the 2016–17 academic year.
 * 2017 – Two institutions left the AII to join their respective new home primary conferences: Rochester to join the WHAC, and Central Christian to join the Sooner Athletic Conference (SAC), both effective after the 2016–17 academic year.
 * 2017 – Cleary University, Florida College, the University of Maine at Fort Kent (UMFK), Rust College, and the College of St. Joseph joined the AII in the 2017–18 academic year.
 * 2018 – Eight institutions left the AII to join their respective new home primary conferences: British Columbia to realign its athletics program to the U Sports, Johnson & Wales–Denver to join the NCAA Division III ranks and the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC), State University of New York Delhi to join the NCAA Division III ranks and the North Atlantic Conference (NAC), Cleary to the WHAC, Stillman and Florida College to join the SSAC, Rust to join the GCAC, and Maine–Fort Kent (UMFK) to realign its athletics program with the USCAA, all effective after the 2017–18 academic year.
 * 2018 – Florida Memorial University, Green Mountain College, Cottey College, Lincoln College, Pennsylvania State University Schuylkill, and Villa Maria College joined the AII in the 2018–19 academic year.
 * 2019 – Five institutions left the AII, three to join their respective new home primary conferences: Indiana University Northwest to join the CCAC, Kentucky Christian to join the AAC, and Villa Maria to realign its athletics program with the USCAA, all effective after the 2018–19 academic year. The fourth and fifth, Green Mountain and St. Joseph (Vt.), ceased operations.
 * 2019 – Bacone College joined the AII in the 2019–20 academic year.
 * 2020 – Two institutions left the AII, one to join its respective new home primary conference: Lincoln (Ill.) to join the CCAC after the 2019–20 academic year. The other, Holy Family ceased operations.
 * 2021 – Two institutions left the AII to join their respective new home primary conferences: Fisk to re-join the GCAC, and the CofO to fully align with the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA), both effective after the 2020–21 academic year.
 * 2021 – The AII was rebranded as the Continental Athletic Conference (CAC) in the 2021–22 academic year.
 * 2021 – Iowa Wesleyan University and Arkansas Baptist College joined the CAC in the 2021–22 academic year.
 * 2022 – Three institutions left the CAC to join their respective new home primary conferences: Wilberforce to join the Mid-South, Lincoln Christian to discontinue its athletics program, and Cottey to join the American Midwest, all effective after the 2021–22 academic year.
 * 2022 – The University of South Carolina Beaufort (USC Beaufort), Indiana University–Purdue University Columbus (IUPUC), and North American University joined the CAC in the 2022–23 academic year.
 * 2023 – Five institutions left the CAC, four to join their respective new home primary conferences: IUPUC to join the River States, North American to join the RRAC, USC Beaufort to fully realign in the NCAA Division II ranks and the Peach Belt Conference (PBC), and Virgin Islands to join the GCAC, all effective after the 2022–23 academic year. The fifth, Iowa Wesleyan, ceased operations; originally they had planned to leave the CAC after the school got an invite to re-join the American Midwest prior to announcing their closure.
 * 2023 – The College of the Ozarks (CofO) returned to the NAIA and re-joined the CAC (after two seasons competing as a full member of the NCCAA), alongside Wilberforce re-joining after competing one season in the Mid-South, both effective in the 2023–24 academic year.
 * 2024 – Six institutions left the CAC, five to join their respective new home primary conferences: CofO to join the SAC, Crowley's Ridge to the American Midwest, Voorhees & Wilberforce to join the HBCUAC (formerly known as the GCAC), and Penn State–Schuylkill to fully align with the USCAA and the Pennsylvania State University Athletic Conference, all effective after the 2023–24 academic year. The sixth, Bacone, announced that it would cease all operations for the 2024–25 academic year.
 * 2024 – Spartanburg Methodist College and Carolina University joined the CAC in the 2024–25 academic year.

Member schools
Schools that competes as independent in some sports that their own conference doesn't sponsor, competes in the CAC as affiliate members (except football).

Current full members
Departing members are highlighted in pink.

 * Notes:

 * Notes:

Former full members

 * Notes:

title: NAIA independent schools


text:
Spirit (band)

Spirit was an American rock band founded in 1967 and based in Los Angeles. Their most commercially successful single in the United States was "I Got a Line on You". They were also known for their albums, including their self-titled debut album, The Family That Plays Together, Clear, and Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus.

Original lineup
The original lineup of the group evolved from a Los Angeles band, the Red Roosters, which included Randy California (born Randy Craig Wolfe; guitars, vocals), Mark Andes (bass) and Jay Ferguson (vocals, percussion). With the addition of California's stepfather Ed Cassidy on drums, and keyboard player John Locke, the new band was originally named the Spirits Rebellious (after a book by Kahlil Gibran), but the name was soon shortened to Spirit. Before returning to his native state, California previously played with Jimi Hendrix as a member of Jimmy James and the Blue Flames in New York City's Greenwich Village in 1966. Hendrix gave Randy Wolfe the nickname "Randy California" to distinguish him from Randy Palmer, whom Hendrix named "Randy Texas".

Cassidy was recognizable by his shaved head (hence his nickname "Mr. Skin", later the title of a Spirit song) and his fondness for wearing black. Born in 1923, he was about twenty years older than the rest of the group. Although his earlier career was primarily in jazz (including stints with Cannonball Adderley, Gerry Mulligan, Roland Kirk, Thelonious Monk and Lee Konitz), he had served as the founding drummer of Rising Sons, an early blues rock vehicle for Taj Mahal and Ry Cooder.

1960s
Early demo recordings by the band were produced by their Topanga Canyon roommate Barry Hansen, later known as the radio host Dr. Demento. In August 1967, the record producer Lou Adler (known for his work with The Mamas & the Papas and The Grass Roots) signed the band to his label, Ode Records. The group's first album, Spirit, was released in 1968. "Mechanical World" was released as a single (it lists the playing time merely as "very long"). The album was a hit, reaching number 31 on the Billboard 200 and staying on the chart for seven months. The album had jazz influences and used elaborate string arrangements (not found on their subsequent recordings) and is the most overtly psychedelic of their albums. A song from the album, "Fresh Garbage", was included on the CBS sampler album The Rock Machine Turns You On, released in 1968 in the UK, Europe and South Africa, and was the UK's first introduction to the band.

The band capitalized on the success of their first album with another single, "I Got a Line on You". Released in November 1968, a month before their second album, The Family That Plays Together, it became their biggest hit single, reaching number 25 on the charts (number 28 in Canada). The album matched its success, reaching number 22. In December, they appeared at the Denver Auditorium, with support band Led Zeppelin, who soon after interpolated parts of Spirit's song "Fresh Garbage" in an extended medley based around their cover of Bob Elgin and Jerry Ragavoy's "As Long as I Have You" (initially popularized by Garnet Mimms) during their early 1969 concerts. Spirit also appeared with Led Zeppelin at two outdoor music festivals in July 1969. Jimmy Page's use of a theremin has been attributed to his seeing Randy California use one that he had mounted to his amplifier. Guitar World magazine stated that "California's most enduring legacy may well be the fingerpicked acoustic theme of the song 'Taurus', which Jimmy Page lifted virtually note for note for the introduction to 'Stairway to Heaven'." The Independent noted the similarity in 1997. In 2014, Mark Andes and a trust acting on behalf of Randy California filed a copyright infringement suit against Led Zeppelin in an attempt to obtain a writing credit for "Stairway to Heaven". Page denied copying "Taurus", and the suit was unsuccessful. The verdict was overturned on appeal in September 2018. On March 9, 2020, the Ninth Circuit re-instated the original jury verdict.

After the success of their early records, the group was asked by French film director Jacques Demy to record the soundtrack to his film Model Shop, and they also made a brief appearance in the film. Their third album, Clear, released in 1969, reached No. 55 on the charts.

"1984" and the Sardonicus era
After the release of Clear, the group recorded the song "1984", written by California and produced by the group on their own. After being released in February 1970, it placed at No. 69 on the Billboard charts and No. 66 on the RPM charts. The song would finally see general release on The Best of Spirit in 1973.

In 1970, Spirit started working on their fourth LP Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus. The band chose frequent Neil Young collaborator David Briggs as the producer at the recommendation of the singer-songwriter, an acquaintance from the Topanga Canyon scene. It was a prolific time for the group's writers, and the album was released in late 1970, peaking at No. 63 in early 1971 in the USA, and No. 49 in Canada. The album included Randy California's "Nature's Way", a minor hit (No. 111) which was written in an afternoon during an engagement at the Fillmore West in San Francisco.

Epic also released an early mix of "Animal Zoo" as a single, but it too only made it to No. 97 on the charts. Like The Who's Tommy and Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon, Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus is critically regarded as a landmark of art rock, with a tapestry of literary themes about the fragility of life and the complexity of the human experience, illustrated by recurring lyric "life has just begun", and continued the group's pioneering exploration of environmental issues in their lyrics (cf. "Fresh Garbage"). The album is also notable for its inventive production and the use of a modular Moog synthesizer.

1971–73
After the group undertook a promotional tour to support the album Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus, Ferguson and Andes left the group, forming Jo Jo Gunne. California had accused them of plotting to take over the group. Their final gig with Spirit occurred on January 30, 1971, which almost ended with a fist-fight.

John Arliss initially took Andes' place. California was still in the lineup, but he had suffered a head injury from a horse riding accident and was unable to tour. Shortly thereafter, bassist and recent University of Texas School of Law graduate Al Staehely was recruited by Locke and Cassidy to replace Arliss. The trio toured briefly before deciding that they had to add a guitarist to do the music justice. Al's brother, John Christian (Chris) Staehely, auditioned for the band and was quickly brought on board, departing the Texas rock group Krackerjack.

The Staehelys, Cassidy and Locke recorded the 1972 album Feedback in Columbia/Epic's Hollywood studios. It was a different turn for the group, showing more of a country rock influence pervading their jazzier tendencies, but it only met with a mild commercial response, also reaching No. 63 in the charts. While the tour for Feedback proceeded very well for much of that year, Cassidy and Locke lacked an affinity for roots-based music and soon left the lineup. The Staehely brothers completed the critically successful tour with drummer Stu Perry before dissolving the group in mid-1973 and releasing their own album, Sta-Hay-Lee.

California, meanwhile, had recorded and issued his first solo album, Kapt. Kopter and the (Fabulous) Twirly Birds, also on Epic Records in late 1972. Featuring appearances by Noel Redding (as "Clit McTorius"), Leslie Sampson (the drummer from Redding's band Road; as "Henry Manchovitz"), and Cassidy, the album had a hard rock sound. Following a brief tour in support of the album in the Los Angeles area with Cassidy and bassist Larry "Fuzzy" Knight, California toured Europe with this trio under the imprimatur of Spirit amid pressure from booking agents who wanted to capitalize on the band's name and were not interested in his solo work. During this period, a follow-up album (The Adventures Of Kaptain Kopter And Commander Cassidy In Potato Land) also was recorded with Cassidy. Although Locke made a guest appearance, it was not intended as a Spirit album at the time. California moved to Molokai, Hawaii, after Epic rejected the completed album.

In 1973, Epic Records decided to re-issue the group's first and third albums as a two-fer entitled Spirit in response to Sardonicus continuing to sell well as a catalog item; eventually, Sardonicus earned the band's only RIAA gold certification in 1976. That same year, Epic issued The Best of Spirit compilation album alongside the Sardonicus track "Mr. Skin" as a single. "Mr. Skin" became another minor hit (peaking at No. 92), and the two-fer also hit the charts along with The Best of Spirit. Cassidy decided to capitalize on the new demand for the group and put together an entirely new group for touring purposes, which lasted throughout the year.

The Mercury years (1974–79)
In 1974, Cassidy made it a point to find and re-establish contact with his stepson. He eventually persuaded California to return to the mainland and give the band another shot. Andes worked with the duo for a while, but never intended to stay, as he was in the process of forming the group Firefall at the same time. Andes was replaced by former Frank Zappa sound engineer Barry Keene.

In early 1975, the group was scheduled to open for Ten Years After at a show in Florida, but when the headlining band backed out at the last minute, Spirit was granted permission to take over the theater for the evening. After going around to local radio stations to promote the show and setting a low ($3) ticket price, Spirit managed to sell out the 3,000-seat theater. Using the profits from the show, they blocked out as much time as they could at Studio 70 in Tampa, Florida.

After recording a large amount of material at the studio, manager Marshall Berle (the nephew of Milton Berle) offered the cache of tapes to Mercury Records. On the basis of the material, the group was offered a contract, and a double-album entitled Spirit of '76 was culled from the material and released in May 1975. The album peaked at No. 147 and garnered some FM airplay, so they quickly followed it up with Son of Spirit, released later that year and featuring many songs taken from the same sessions.

For the tour in support of Son of Spirit, Locke re-joined the group. Eventually, Andes returned to the lineup as well, and though Ferguson declined to participate in the group reunion at first, the band (with the addition of Mark's brother Matt Andes as a second guitarist) recorded an album entitled Farther Along, released in late 1976.

First full reunion and Future Games
The album returned the group to the U.S. charts one last time, peaking at No. 179. For a few shows at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, Ferguson re-joined the group. Neil Young created an incident during the final show's encore of "Like a Rolling Stone" when he walked on stage inebriated. California would later claim that he did not recognize Young, but at the time was angry with Young for upstaging what he saw as his own comeback. California moved over in front of Neil and began pushing him backwards, away from the microphone, back past the drumkit and offstage. Young, along with other influential artists including New Hollywood director Hal Ashby, had been visiting the band backstage before they went on, and Locke (a friend of Young) had invited the guitarist to join them in their encore. When Locke saw California pushing Young offstage, he got up from his piano and said that he had had enough and didn't ever want to play with California again, walking off stage. Cassidy initially quelled the situation by leaving his kit and physically pulling both California and Young back onstage to the microphone to close out the song, asking the audience to sing along with them. After finishing the song, the band members argued backstage over what had unfolded leading to the end of the reunion.

Afterwards, California assembled Future Games: A Magical Kahauna Dream with Cassidy and limited assistance from session musicians. Although Mercury approved its release in early 1977, the experimental album (which included a Hendrix-influenced cover of "All Along the Watchtower" and underpinned science fiction-based lyrical themes with many samples from Star Trek: The Original Series in a variant of filk) received no promotion, ending what little bit of commercial momentum the group might have regained. It also (initially) ended their contract with Mercury. During this period, Ferguson was having success in his solo career with the hits "Thunder Island" (1977; No. 9) and "Shakedown Cruise" (1979; No. 31).

Return to trio
In a reprise of the ''Kapt. Kopter''-era trio, California, Cassidy and Larry "Fuzzy" Knight toured extensively as Spirit throughout 1978; an English leg saw the band headline a triple bill that included post-punk ensemble Alternative TV and The Police. Throughout the tour, California doubled on the foot-controlled Moog Taurus to partially compensate for the lack of a keyboardist. The German TV/radio programme Rockpalast recorded and broadcast Spirit's entire show of March 4/5, 1978, including the encore jam where Dickey Betts joined the band. This trio lineup also recorded a heavily-overdubbed live album (also released in 1978) that was released in slightly different configurations in several countries by different independent labels. It was not a commercial success, and after the tour's end in 1979, California left the group again.

The 1980s and beyond
After Spirit's demise, California put together another group with the short-lived intent of restarting his solo career. While in England, a fan presented him with a petition of 5,000 signatures requesting the release of the Potato Land album from 1973. Consequently, in 1981, California released an overdubbed selection of tracks from the original album alongside several unrelated songs dating from the late 1970s. Contrary to the intention of the original sessions, it was released under the imprimatur of Spirit in the United States by Rhino Records (a nascent archival label with ties to Dr. Demento) and in Britain by Beggars Banquet Records, a well-regarded independent label specializing in punk rock and its derivations. Surprisingly, it was the only Spirit album other than Sardonicus to chart in Britain, peaking at No. 40 in the UK Albums Chart and receiving airplay on BBC Radio 1.

On February 14, 1982, Spirit, performed as a three-piece band, Randy California, Ed Cassidy and an unknown bass player, at Kiel Auditorium in St. Louis, MO. The show was sponsored and heavily promoted by local rock radio station K-SHE 95 and billed as; "K-SHE 95 presents the 5th Annual St. Valentine's Day Massacre," JOHN KAY & STEPPENWOLF, w/special guests; SPIRIT. The show was a near sell out with a little over 8,000 in attendance. California's second solo album, Euro-American, was released in 1982 by Beggars Banquet. It featured a lineup including drummer Preston Heyman. During this period, California performed on the second tier at the 1982 Glastonbury Festival. When the power generator failed—allegedly because the operator had fallen asleep stoned and neglected to refill the fuel—Heyman performed a twenty-minute solo while the situation was rectified.

In December 1982, the original Spirit lineup re-formed and recorded several songs from their first four albums (as well as a few new tracks) live on a soundstage. The band was joined by several guests, including Jeff Baxter and Bob Welch. The resulting Spirit of '84 (released internationally as The Thirteenth Dream) was initially recorded for an audiophile label; however, Mercury Records re-signed the band (including a California solo deal) and released the album in 1984. The album was only a moderate critical success and failed to chart. While some of the original members went on to do other projects, California and Cassidy continued touring with new members Scott Monahan on keyboards and Dave Waterbury on bass.

California headed to England and recorded his third solo album, the contemporary hard rock effort Restless, for which Heyman (who played on the track "Jack Rabbit") secured a deal with Phonogram for in late 1985. Following a few live dates in England, California returned to the United States and resumed touring extensively with Cassidy, Monahan, and Waterbury. There was one more solo album from California: a collection of material entitled Shattered Dreams that was released in 1986.

In 1988, California secured a deal for Spirit with prominent independent label I.R.S. Records (best known for cultivating R.E.M. and The Go-Go's), leading Locke to rejoin the band. They recorded an album entitled Rapture in the Chambers at the Malibu, California, recording studio Nileland, where studio owner/engineer, bassist and vocalist Mike Nile was asked to join the band. Although the group (including California, Cassidy, Locke, Nile, Monahan, and George Valuck on keyboards) toured extensively in support, the album failed to chart. California, Cassidy, and Nile continued to tour as a power trio while self-releasing Tent of Miracles in 1990. Nile contributed heavily to the album, writing songs and sharing lead vocals.

Spirit continued working almost continually for the next six years. Although they only released one album after Tent of Miracles, the group was always either recording or touring. California had his own home recording studio since the early 1980s, though he had been making home recordings for years prior to that. This came to an end on January 2, 1997, when California drowned off the coast of Hawaii. He had been surfing with his son, who got caught in a riptide. He managed to push his son to safety but ended up losing his own life.

While Cassidy played a few dates with Spirit alumni under the name "Spirit Revisited" in 1998, California's death was effectively the end of the group. Locke died of complications resulting from lymphoma in August 2006. Cassidy died on December 6, 2012, in San Jose, California, at age 89.

Posthumous
California's death, however, did not mark the end of the emergence of Spirit material. Starting in 2000, there have been five collections of previously unreleased studio and live material, four of which were two-CD sets. California had also prepared an anthology of material from the group's first stint with Mercury Records entitled The Mercury Years. The two-CD set was released in early 1997, though it raised the ire of some fans who did not care for the fact that some of the material had been re-edited or featured overdubbing that was not present on the original releases.

Likewise, nearly all of Spirit's original albums are currently in print on CD. This is thanks to the efforts of Sony Music (with the Epic catalog, though Collector's Choice Music was the first to reissue Feedback on CD in the U.S., following a brief release on disc in France in the late 1990s) and Beat Goes On alongside Edsel, both UK labels (with the Mercury catalog, some of which had made it to CD prior to Beat Goes On and Edsel reissuing all of their Mercury albums). Their later independent albums are available through the group's website. The one album that is unavailable at this time is Rapture In The Chambers, which has not been reissued since the original 1989 release, though it was released on CD at that time.

Spirit has also found its work sampled by modern artists several times. The most notable of these was the "Extra P. Remix" of the song "Resurrection" by Common (which samples "Ice" from Clear) and "Feel Good Time" by Pink (which samples the track "Fresh Garbage").

"I Got a Line On You" was most recently covered by Alice Cooper's super group the Hollywood Vampires on the album of the same name, released on September 11, 2015.

Musical style
According to AllMusic, Spirit was a "Ambitious and acclaimed West Coast psychedelic band that fused hard rock to jazz, blues, country, and folk"; Formed by an eclectic group of musicians who had backgrounds in rock, pop, folk, blues, classical music and jazz backgrounds, Spirit "had an eclectic musical style in keeping with the early days of progressive rock" and they "seemed determine to out-eclecticize everybody else on the California psychedelic scene, with [their] melange of rock, jazz, blues, folk-rock, and even a bit of classical and Indian music." Robert Christian wrote that Randy California was "the rock equivalent of the cool, progressive jazzman of the '50s".

Band members

 * Original lineup

Following Sardonicus, many musicians passed through the group's ranks. Most of them did not make a huge contribution to the group's sound, but some did. The most important of the later group members are listed here:
 * Randy California – guitar, vocals (1967–1972, 1972–1973, 1974–1979, 1982–1997; his death)
 * Ed Cassidy – drums (1967–1972, 1972–1973, 1974–1979, 1982–1997; died 2012)
 * John Locke – keyboards (1967–1972, 1976, 1982–1985, 1988–1989; died 2006)
 * Mark Andes – bass, guitar, vocals (1967–1971, 1974, 1976, 1982–85, 1988–1989)
 * Jay Ferguson – vocals, percussion, keyboards, guitar (1967–1971, 1976, 1982–1985)
 * Later members

 * John Arliss – bass (1971)
 * Al Staehely – bass, lead vocals (1971–1973)
 * John Christian Staehely – guitar, vocals (1971–1973)
 * Stu Perry – drums (1972–1973)
 * Scott Shelly – guitar, vocals (1973–1974)
 * Donnie Dacus – guitar, vocals (1973–1974)
 * Steve Olitski – keyboards (1973–1974)
 * Steve Edwards – guitar, vocals (1973–1974)
 * Barry Keene – bass (1974–1976)
 * Benji – keyboards (1975)
 * Matt Andes – guitar, vocals (1976, 1995–1997)
 * Larry "Fuzzy" Knight – bass, vocals (1972–1973, 1976–1979)
 * Terry Anderson – vocals (1976–1977)
 * Scott Monahan – keyboards, bass, vocals (1985–1988, 1990–1995)
 * Dave Waterbury – bass, vocals (1985–1988)
 * Mike Nile – bass, vocals (1988–1993)
 * George Valuck – keyboards (1990–1995)
 * Steve "Liberty" Loria – bass, vocals (1993–1997)
 * Gordon Patriarca- bass (1995–1996)
 * Rachel Andes – vocals (1995–1997)
 * Walter Egan – bass, vocals (1997)

title: Spirit (band)


text:
Douglas DC-4

The Douglas DC-4 is an American four-engined (piston), propeller-driven airliner developed by the Douglas Aircraft Company. Military versions of the plane, the C-54 and R5D, served during World War II, in the Berlin Airlift and into the 1960s. From 1945, many civil airlines operated the DC-4 worldwide.

Design and development
Following proving flights by United Airlines of the DC-4E, it became obvious that the 52-seat airliner was too inefficient and unreliable to operate economically and the partner airlines, American Airlines, Eastern, Pan American, Trans World and United, recommended a lengthy list of changes to the design. Douglas took the new requirements and produced an entirely new, much smaller design, the DC-4A, with a simpler, still unpressurized fuselage, Pratt & Whitney R-2000 Twin Wasp engines, and a single fin and rudder. A tricycle landing gear was retained.

With the entry of the United States into World War II, in December 1941, the United States Army Air Forces took over the provisional orders for the airlines and allocated them the designation C-54 Skymaster. The first C-54 flew from Clover Field in Santa Monica, California, on 14 February 1942.

To meet military requirements, the first production aircraft had four additional auxiliary fuel tanks in the main cabin, which reduced the passenger seats to 26. The following batch of aircraft was the first built to military specifications, and was designated C-54A and built with a stronger floor and a cargo door with a hoist and winch. The first C-54A was delivered in February 1943. With the introduction of the C-54B in March 1944, the outer wings were changed to hold integral fuel tanks, allowing two of the cabin tanks to be removed; this allowed 49 seats (or 16 stretchers) to be fitted. The C-54C was a hybrid for Presidential use; it had a C-54A fuselage with four cabin fuel tanks and the C-54B wings with built-in tanks to achieve maximum range.

The most common variant was the C-54D, which entered service in August 1944, essentially a C-54B with more powerful R-2000-11 engines. With the C-54E the last two cabin fuel tanks were moved to the wings, which allowed more freight or 44 passenger seats.

In total, 1,163 C-54s (or R5D in US Navy service) were built for the United States military between 1942 and January 1946 and another 79 DC-4s were built after the war. A later variant, with more powerful Merlin engines allowing it to fly over 40% faster, was built in Canada as the Canadair North Star.

Operational history
The DC-4/C-54 proved to be a popular and reliable type, with 1,245 being built between May 1942 and August 1947, including 79 postwar DC-4s. Several remain in service as of 2022.

Douglas continued to develop the type during the war in preparation for a return to airline use when peace returned. Sales of new aircraft had to compete against 500 wartime ex-military C-54s and R5Ds which came onto the civilian market, many of which were converted to DC-4 standard by Douglas. DC-4s were a favorite of charter airlines such as Great Lakes Airlines, North American Airlines, Universal Airlines, and Transocean Airlines. In the 1950s, Transocean (Oakland, California) was the largest civilian C-54/DC-4 operator.

Douglas produced 79 new-build DC-4s between January 1946 and August 9, 1947, the last example being delivered to South African Airways. Pressurization was an option, but all civilian DC-4s (and C-54s) were built unpressurized.

A total of 330 DC-4s and C-54s were used in the Berlin Airlift, which made them one of the most numerous types involved.

Purchasers of new-build DC-4s included Pan American Airways, National Airlines, Northwest Airlines, and Western Airlines in the US, and KLM Royal Dutch Air Lines, Scandinavian Airlines System, Iberia Airlines of Spain, Swissair, Air France, Sabena Belgian World Airlines, Cubana de Aviación, Avianca, Aerolíneas Argentinas, Aeropostal of Venezuela (1946), and South African Airways overseas. Several airlines used new-build DC-4s to start scheduled transatlantic flights between Latin America and Europe. Among the earliest were Aerolíneas Argentinas (1946), Iberia Airlines of Spain (1946), and Cubana de Aviación (1948).

Basic prices for a new DC-4 in 1946–47 were around £140,000-. In 1960, used DC-4s were available for around.

, two DC-4s were used for charters in South Africa by the South African Airways Museum Society, with both aircraft (ZS-BMH and ZS-AUB) carrying historical South African Airways livery.

Buffalo Airways of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories continues to operate the type commercially.

Variants

 * DC-4
 * Main production airliner, postwar

 * Canadair North Star
 * Canadian production of a Rolls-Royce Merlin-powered variant, plus a single example powered with Pratt & Whitney R-2800s

 * Aviation Traders Carvair
 * British cargo and car ferry with a modified nose with a raised cockpit to allow cars to be loaded more easily

Surviving aircraft

Very few DC-4s remain in service today.
 * The last two passenger DC-4s operating worldwide are based in Johannesburg, South Africa. They fly with old South African Airways (SAA) livery. They are ZS-AUB Outeniqua and ZS-BMH Lebombo and are owned by the South African Airways Museum Society and operated by Skyclass Aviation, a company specialising in classic and VIP charters to exotic destinations in Africa.
 * A 1944-built DC-4/C-54 is on display at Historical Aircraft Restoration Society in New South Wales, Australia, with a planned restoration to airworthiness.
 * A 1945-built DC-4 (C-54D) 43-17228 is being operated by Berlin Airlift Historical Foundation as a flying museum of the Berlin Airlift. Called the Spirit of Freedom, it replaced a previous C-54 (44-9144) damaged by a tornado in 2020.
 * One ex-Buffalo Airways DC-4 (N55CW c/n 10673, currently registered to Aircraft Guaranty Corp Trustee) is fitted with spray bars on top of the wings and is currently based in Florida on standby for oil pollution control.
 * A 1945-built C-54 (C-54E-5-DO) c/n 27289, USAAF serial 44-9063, was recovered from Reconstruction Finance Corporation by Douglas aircraft for conversion to DC-4. It served with Pan American World Airways from 1946 to 1952 as NC-88887, then with a succession of carriers and private owners until retired in 1989 as N88887. Around 1990 it was placed on display at the Berlin Airlift Memorial at Frankfurt Airport.

title: Douglas DC-4