Altoona is a town in Etowah County in the U. S. state of Alabama. It is part of the Gadsden Metropolitan Statistical Area. At the 2010 census the population was 933. Altoona had its start in the year 1900 as a mining town, was named for another coal town, Pennsylvania. A post office has been in operation at Altoona since 1900, it incorporated in 1908. Altoona is located in western Etowah County at 34°1′45″N 86°19′14″W; the town extends west into Blount County. It is located in the Murphree Valley at the base of Altoona Mountain. Straight Mountain is a narrow ridge which runs nearly through the center of the town. Alabama State Route 132 leads southwest 10 miles to Oneonta, the Blount County seat, northeast towards Gadsden via U. S. Route 278. According to the U. S. Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 4.3 square miles, of which 0.012 square miles, or 0.23%, is water. Altoona first appeared on the 1910 U. S. Census as an incorporated town. See Altoona precinct/division below; as of the census of 2000, there were 984 people, 397 households, 271 families residing in the town.

The population density was 258.7 people per square mile. There were 437 housing units at an average density of 114.9 per square mile. The racial makeup of the town was 95.43% White, 2.54% Black or African American, 0.10% Native American, 0.91% from other races, 1.02% from two or more races. 2.54 % of the population were Latino of any race. There were 397 households out of which 33.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.9% were married couples living together, 15.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 31.5% were non-families. 29.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.1% had someone living alone, 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.89. In the town, the population was spread out with 25.5% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 26.3% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, 17.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 78.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.2 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $20,469, the median income for a family was $28,750. Males had a median income of $30,250 versus $22,344 for females; the per capita income for the town was $11,168. About 21.8% of families and 27.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 39.3% of those under age 18 and 16.3% of those age 65 or over. Altoona Precinct first appeared on the 1910 U. S. Census. In 1960, it was changed to the Altoona Census Division as part of a general reorganization of counties; the census division only includes the Etowah County portion of the town of Altoona. The Blount County portion is in the Clarence Census Division

Francis Knollys, 1st Viscount Knollys, was a British courtier. He served as Private Secretary to the Sovereign from 1901 to 1913. Knollys was the son of Sir William Thomas Knollys, of Blount's Court at Rotherfield Peppard in Oxfordshire, was educated in Guernsey, he entered the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, in 1851, was commissioned into the 23rd Foot as an ensign in 1854. In the following year, Knollys joined the Department of the Commissioners of Audit as a junior examiner. In 1862, he became Secretary to the Treasurer to the Prince of Wales. In 1870, he was appointed Private Secretary to the Prince of Wales, an office he held until the Prince, became King in 1901, he was Groom-in-Waiting to the Prince of Wales 1886–1901. Knollys became Private Secretary to the Sovereign, an office he filled until 1913, he was known for his discretion in this role. He was Gentleman Usher to Queen Victoria 1868–1901, a Lord-in-waiting to Queen Mary 1910–1924. Lord Knollys died in August 1924, aged 87, his titles were inherited by Edward George William Tyrwhitt Knollys, 2nd Viscount Knollys.

Knollys was created a Companion of the Order of the Bath in 1876, promoted to Knight Commander in 1897 and to Knight Grand Cross in 1908. He was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order in 1901, a Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George in 1886, awarded the Imperial Service Order in 1903. In the 1902 Coronation Honours list, it was announced he would receive a barony, he was raised to the peerage as Baron Knollys, of Caversham in the County of Oxford, on 15 July 1902, he took his seat in the House of Lords the following month, on 7 August. He became a Privy Councillor in 1910, in 1911 he was further honoured when he was made Viscount Knollys, of Caversham in the County of Oxford. GCB: Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath - 1908 GCVO: Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order - 2 February 1901 KCMG: Knight Commander of the Most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George - 1886 ISO: Imperial Service Order - 1903 Roderick R. McLean. "Knollys, first Viscount Knollys".

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. Doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/34351. Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by the Viscount Knollys

"Countdown" is a song by Rush from their 1982 album Signals. Its lyrics are about the first launch of the Space Shuttle Columbia, which the band members watched from a VIP area called "Red Sector A"; the song incorporates audio from voice communications between astronauts John Young and Robert Crippen and ground control along with commentary from the Kennedy Space Center Public Affairs Officer leading up to the launch. The song incorporates a driving rhythm and heavy use of synthesizers, with Geddy Lee switching between his synthesizer on the verses and his Rickenbacker 4001 bass on the song's chorus; the lyrics paint a vivid account of the group's experiences witnessing the launch. The song closes the album, with its cautionary tales of man's reliance on technology, on a more positive, celebratory note; the song was used as a wakeup song for astronauts during STS-109, the last successful flight of Space Shuttle Columbia. It was used again for astronaut Mike Fincke during STS-134, flown by Space Shuttle Endeavour on its final mission before retirement.

Fincke described how his friends Greg Shurtz and NASA employee Ken Fisher chose the song because the band was inspired to write it after viewing the launch of STS-1. Fincke went on to say the song was played as a tribute to the space shuttle program, which has inspired people around the world; this song, as printed in the liner notes of the Signals album, is dedicated to "the astronauts Young & Crippen and all the people of NASA for their inspiration and cooperation." List of Rush songs Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics NASA History, Program Office. STS-1 Mission Commentary Tape

Seven Stars is a historic pub on Thomas Lane, England. One of the earliest references to the pub is in the Bristol Record Office, it mentions Sir John Hawkins who, whilst buying what was to become the Georges Brewery, acquired the lease in 1694 from the Saunders family brewing dynasty "...a half tenement, the sign of the Seven Stars, St Thomas Lane"."Michael Jaine, victualler" held "The Starrs" "in accordance with his father's will" in the latter part of the seventeenth century. Michael Jayne was the son of William Jayne of St. Thomas, who died in 1666. Abraham Sanders married Margaret Jayne, daughter of William Jayne, Abraham Sanders was the administrator of William's will. Michael Jayne, innholder of St. Thomas, was deceased by 1672, when an inventory of his estate was taken. There has been no record found as to how the property transferred to Abraham Saunders after Michael's death. Abraham Saunders "late of the city of Bristol" died in 1690 and his son Anthony transferred the property to John Hawkins in 1694.

It is now noted for its association with the abolitionist Thomas Clarkson, who visited in 1787 and used the pub and its sympathetic landlord, Thompson, as a base for his researches into Bristol's "honourable trade" of slavery

The DRG Class 24 steam engines were German standard locomotives built for the Deutsche Reichsbahn between 1928 and 1939 to haul passenger trains. These engines, nickname the'prairie horse' were developed specially for the long, flat routes in West and East Prussia. 95 examples were built by the firms of Linke-Hofmann and others. The two units with operating numbers 24 069 and 24 070 were supplied by Borsig with a medium pressure boiler; these locos ran with a boiler overpressure of 245.1 N/cm2, but were rebuilt in 1952. The Deutsche Bundesbahn took over 38 locomotives and retired them by 1966; the last one with the DB was locomotive number 24 067, stabled in Rheydt and taken out of service there in August 1966. The engines were given operating numbers 24 001 to 24 095. Engine numbers 24 002, 004, 009, 021 and 030 were left with the DR after the Second World War, they were all stabled in Jerichow shed in 1960 and their sphere of operations until 1968 was the branch line network of the Kleinbahn AG in Genthin.

No. 24 009 was re-numbered in 1970 to 37 1009 and was used as a reserve breakdown engine in Güsten and Stendal. In 1972 it was sold to the West German railway magazine Eisenbahn-Kurier. Thirty-four locomotive remained in Poland after the Second World War, where PKP classified them as Oi2, they served until the last one was withdrawn in 1976. One of the preserved locomotives in Germany, no. 24 083, had been in service in Poland. The locomotives were equipped with 3 T 17 tenders. Four Class 24 locomotives have been preserved: three in Germany, one in Poland. List of DRG railbuses Wenzel, Hansjürgen. Die Baureihe 24. Die kleinste Einheits-Schlepptenderlok. Freiburg: EK-Verlag. ISBN 3-88255-124-0

This page lists individuals and organisations who publicly expressed an opinion regarding the 2014 Scottish independence referendum. Not all of the individuals listed were able to vote in the referendum some of those with a Scottish background. Registered political partiesBritannica Conservative PartyScottish Conservative Party Labour Party Liberal DemocratsNon-participant political partiesAlliance for Workers' Liberty Britain First British National Party Communist Party of Britain Respect Party Socialist Equality Party United Kingdom Independence Party Workers' Revolutionary Party The following organisations and individuals registered with the Electoral Commission as supporting a No vote. Alistair McConnachie – individual Angus MacDonald – individual Better Together, official campaign. Better With Community Projects Ltd.. Ghill Donald – individual Grand Orange Lodge of Scotland Let's Stay Together No Borders Campaign Stirlingshire for No Thanks The Scottish Research Society Tony George Stevenson – individual WFS2014 Ltd Newspapers MagazinesThe Economist The Spectator BAE Systems, defence contractor.

BP, oil and gas company. William Grant & Sons, distillers. Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen. Communication Workers Union. Community. GMB – trade union Union of Shop and Allied Workers. Academics Together. Business Together. Forces Together. Lawyers Together. LGBT Together. NHS Together. Rural Together. Women Together. Work Together. Contested elections with Scotland Within the rest of the United Kingdom International Registered political partiesScottish Green Party Scottish National Party Scottish Socialist Party SolidarityNon-participant political partiesEnglish Democrats Green Party of England and Wales Revolutionary Communist Party of Britain Socialist Party of England and Wales The following groups and individuals registered with the Electoral Commission as supporting a Yes vote. 1001 Campaign Business for Scotland, a business-oriented campaign. Christians for Independence Farming 4 Yes Generation Yes Labour for Independence, members of the Scottish Labour Party who support independence.

National Collective Radical Independence Campaign Sarah-Louise Bailey-Kelly – individual Scottish Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament Scottish Independence Convention Spirit of Independence Wealthy Nation Wings Over Scotland, a political website. Women for Independence Yes Scotland, official campaign. NewspapersSunday Herald Edinburgh, Fife and Stirling branch of the Communications Workers Union. Prison Officers Association, Scotland area. National Union of Rail and Transport Workers, Scotland area. Academics for Yes. Lawyers for Yes Scottish Secular Society Contested elections with Scotland Within the rest of the United Kingdom InternationalArtur Mas, President of the Generalitat of Catalonia. Milorad Dodik, President of Republika Srpska. Bernard Drainville, Member of the National Assembly of Quebec After the Confederation of British Industry attempted to register with the Electoral Commission as a group supporting a "no" vote in the referendum, several organisations resigned or suspended their membership of the CBI in order to maintain their neutrality.

The CBI had its registration annulled, with its director saying that the attempt to register had given the misleading impression that it was a political entity. Socialist Party of Great Britain NewspapersDaily Record Sunday Mail The Independent on Sunday The Observer The Scottish Sun Public and Commercial Services Union Unite Voice A compilation of "doubters" by Better Together and journalist Simon Johnson was published by the Daily Telegraph on 24 March 2014, it listed individuals and organisations who have raised concerns about Scottish independence, although they have not expressed outright opposition. During the financial reporting season in early 2014, several companies listed Scottish independence as an issue in their risk management sections. Businessmen, including Sir Tom Hunter and Sir Tom Farmer, called for more clarity in the referendum debate to best make a decision. In 2012, the Scottish Trades Union Congress published a report called A Just Scotland, which laid out "challenges for both sides of the debate", in particular calling on Better Together to "outline a practical vision of how social and economic justice can be achieved within the union".

The STUC had refused an offer to join the Better Together campaign