The Project Gutenberg eBook of Observations on the Terataspis grandis, Hall, the largest known trilobite, by John Mason Clarke This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook. Title: Observations on the Terataspis grandis, Hall, the largest known trilobite Author: John Mason Clarke Release Date: January 18, 2022 [eBook #67196] Language: English Produced by: Tom Cosmas produced from images provided by The Internet Archive and placed in the Public Domain. *** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK OBSERVATIONS ON THE TERATASPIS GRANDIS, HALL, THE LARGEST KNOWN TRILOBITE *** Transcriber Note -- Text emphasis denoted by _Italics_. OBSERVATIONS ON THE TERATASPIS GRANDIS, Hall, THE LARGEST KNOWN TRILOBITE. BY J. M. CLARKE. OBSERVATIONS ON THE TERATASPIS GRANDIS, Hall, The Largest Known Trilobite. By J. M. CLARKE. Communicated to the State Geologist December, 1890. Trilobites of great size have been reported from various formations. With rare exceptions, however, these relics are but fragments of the test, leaving to the imagination the restoration of the original proportions of the animal, and without an earnest mental effort one is apt to leave the contemplation of the large fragment with no adequate conception of the imposing lineaments of its owner. Indications of these gigantic forms occur in all the grand faunas of the Palæozoic, with the exception of the Carboniferous where diminution in numbers was accompanied by diminution in size, or, in other words, by the prevalence of genera in which great size was never attained. Almost with the earliest known appearance of the Trilobites the genus PARADOXIDES attained magnificent proportions. _Paradoxides Harlani_, the well-known species of the Braintree agilities, must have grown to a length of 18 inches. ANGELIN has figured an entire specimen of _P. Tessini_ 12 inches in length, and BARRANDE a fragment of an individual of _P. imperialis_ which must have had about the same size. Mr. G. F. MATTHEW has described a nearly entire individual of an immense _P. regina_ from the St. John beds, 15 inches long and 12 inches across the base of the cephalon, and it is claimed, with undoubted accuracy, that this is the largest undismembered specimen of a trilobite found in any country. In the second faunas great Asaphids were not uncommon. As early as 1839 Dr. JOHN LOCKE described in the report of the Geological Survey of Ohio, a portion of an immense pygidium to which he gave the name _Isotelus maximus_. In 1843 Dr. LOCKE figured an entire individual of what he considered the same species, changing the name, however, to _Isotelus megistus_. This specimen measured nine and three-quarters inches in length. The figure was accompanied by outlines of two large pygidia, the greater of which was that referred to in 1839, which, the author says, coincided "with the end of an ellipse 22 inches long and 12 inches broad." This is an evidently much compressed fragment, measuring seven inches in its greatest transverse diameter, and assuming this as the greatest diameter of the pygidium and restoring the length from the proportions of the animal as there given, the original length of its owner would have been about 13 inches. The plate is incomplete on its anterior portion, and it is probable that the error in this estimate due to the exaggeration of size from compression of the shield, is compensated by the loss of diameter from imperfect retention. This great pygidium, with other large fragments of the same species, were used as a basis for a well-known restoration in plaster to be found in some of the older museums of this country. ANGELIN has given a restoration of _Megalaspis heros_ 14 inches in length and BRÖGGER estimated the original length of _Megalaspis acuticauda_ to be fully 16 inches. BARRANDE figured an entire _Asaphus nobilis_ from Etage D which measures 10½ inches. Not until the introduction of the genera DALMANITES, HOMALONOTUS and LICHAS do we meet with the most gigantic proportions attained by these crustaceans, and then only after these genera have become well established. Perhaps none of their representatives in the lower Silurian faunas were of commanding size; in the upper Silurian large but not extravagant proportions were sometimes attained. _Lichas Boltoni_ of the Niagara fauna, is a magnificent species, one of the largest of its race and remarkable for the frequency with which its parts are found together, an extremely uncommon occurrence in this thin-shelled group. The _Lichas pustulosus_ of the Lower Helderberg shaly limestone was a great species attaining a length of 10 inches or more. _Homalonotus delphinocephalus_ of the Niagara fauna grew to large size but does not appear to have attained the length of its successor in the Lower Helderberg, _H. Vanuxemi_, which, according to the restoration from a very large fragment given in the Palæontology of New York, Volume VII (plate V B) grew to a length of at least 11½ inches. SALTER has mentioned (Palæontographical Society, vol. xvii, p. 109) a large fragment of _Homalonotus rudis_ which he estimates may have been a foot in length. In later faunas are found traces of this genus of still greater size. Dr. BRUSHAUSEN has figured a pygidium of _H. gigas_ from the Spiriferen-sandstein of the Hartz, the possessor of which must have been upward of one foot in length. Unquestionably the largest individual of HOMALONOTUS known is that of _H. major_, from the Oriskany sandstone, figured in the Palæontology of New York, Volume VII (plate V A), a large fragment representing the greater part of the thorax and the pygidium, and according to the restoration there given the original length of the animal must have been well nigh 15 inches. The later and common Hamilton species, _H. DeKayi_, attained no extravagant size though frequently large, e. g. the enrolled individual figured on plate IV (_op. cit._), the largest entire specimen reported, which is about 9 inches in length; some large fragments indicate that the animal was sometimes as long as 11 inches. The size attained by some of the Devonian species of DALMANITES and their immediate predecessors was marvelous. The pygidium of _D. micrurus_ figured in the Palæontology of New York, Volume III, page 359 (there given as _D. pleuroptyx_), indicates an individual at least 11 inches in length, and there is reason to believe that the Lower Helderberg species, _D. nasutus_ and _D. tridens_, attained a size fully as great. Most remarkable however is the great pygidium of _D. myrmecophorus_ of the Corniferous limestone, figured upon plate XV of Volume VII (_op. cit._), which from the restoration there given, made from careful comparative measurements, would imply an individual 16 inches long. An interesting feature of the early Devonian trilobitic faunas is the reappearance of CALYMENE in the Schoharie grit and Corniferous limestone, a fact which has been duplicated by the recent description by Dr. OEHLERT of a large species (_C. reperta_), from the lower Devonian of Saint Malo in Angers. The American Devonian species, _G. platys_, is not only the latest but the largest known representative of the genus, and for a group which at its maximum development in species and individuals in the Silurian, rarely attained considerable dimensions, the proportions reached by _G. platys_ are especially noteworthy. The entire individuals on plate 1 of Volume VII of the Palæontology show this, and the restoration accompanying a very large pygidium on plate xxv, if accurately drawn, indicates that a length of upward of eight inches was sometimes attained by the species. No larger or more extravagantly ornamented trilobite than the _Terataspis grandis_, HALL, is known. This giant of its race has left fragments of its test in the Schoharie grit of eastern New York, and in the commingled Schoharie and Corniferous faunas of the Province of Ontario. A very complete illustration and discussion of its different parts, are given in Volume VII of the Palæontology (p. 73, pls. xvii, xviii, xix), and from these one readily obtains an idea of the structure of the cephalon, thorax and abdomen, the free cheeks alone being there unrepresented. There is, however, a very large free cheek in a fragment of Schoharie grit in the collection of the American Museum of Natural History, which in all probability belongs to this species. At the time of the preparation of this volume of the Palæontology of New York, the original specimen of Mr BILLINGS' species _Lichas superbus_, was made accessible for study by the kindness of the Director of the Geological and Natural History Survey of Canada. This specimen is a portion of the cephalon and a pygidium of _Terataspis grandis_, lying in juxtaposition on the same block, there being no doubt of their having belonged to the same animal. From this specimen it was possible to establish the relative proportions of cephalon and pygidium in this species, and from the data furnished by all the material under study, with careful comparative measurements of entire specimens of LICHAS in the collections of the State Museum, and of figures of such specimens as have been given by ANGELIN, BARRANDE and SCHMIDT, the accompanying reproduction of the original size of the animal has been drawn, its base being the largest and most complete cephalon figured in the work cited (pl. xvii, fig. 1; xviii, figs. 1, 2). This restoration gives to the proprietor of this cephalon a length of nearly 20 inches. The figure does not however do full justice to the proportions of the animal. In the cephalon which has served as a base for the restoration the great ovoid central lobe of the glabella has a length of 2¼ inches. Mr BILLINGS speaks of a specimen of _Lichas superbus_ in which the length of this lobe was fully 3 inches. If the increase in size of this part was accompanied by the same relative increase in the size of the entire animal (and there is no good reason for assuming the contrary), such a fragment would represent an individual fully 24 inches in length, a size unsurpassed and unequaled by any other known trilobite. With his extravagant armor of defense and aggression, _Terataspis grandis_ must have been easy lord of his invertebrate domain and no very palatable morsel for the heavily plated fishes of his day. In the genera PHACOPS and PROETUS great size was never attained. The earlier forms of both of these genera were of inconspicuous proportions and their maximum size was attained in the middle Devonian. An entire _Phacops rana_ is figured in the Palæontology of New York, Volume VII, which has a length of 4 inches, and cephala in the Museum collection indicate an original length of 5 inches, perhaps the greatest size which has been observed in this genus. PROETUS has a still smaller habit, that is, its maximum size is never so great, and, probably, the largest example of the genus recorded is represented by a cephalon of _Proetus macrocephalus_ from the Hamilton group, which belonged to an individual fully 3¾ inches in length. [Illustration: Plate V] * * * * * Transcriber Note The above article was published as part of the "Tenth Annual Report of the State Geologist For the Year 1890." (Albany, NY) on pp. 87-90 and Plate V with "Explanation of Plate V" on facing page. It was also published as part of the "Forty-fourth Annual Report of the Regents for the Year 1890" (Albany, NY) on pp. 111-114 and Plate V. Unfortunately, the available scans of these documents DO NOT include the Plate nor the Explanation pages. *** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK OBSERVATIONS ON THE TERATASPIS GRANDIS, HALL, THE LARGEST KNOWN TRILOBITE *** Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will be renamed. Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you charge for an eBook, except by following the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use of the Project Gutenberg trademark. If you do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the trademark license is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and research. Project Gutenberg eBooks may be modified and printed and given away--you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks not protected by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the trademark license, especially commercial redistribution. START: FULL LICENSE THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work (or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project Gutenberg-tm License available with this file or online at www.gutenberg.org/license. Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works 1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property (trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. 1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below. 1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the United States and you are located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. 1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any country other than the United States. 1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: 1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, copied or distributed: This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook. 1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. 1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. 1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. 1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project Gutenberg-tm License. 1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm website (www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. 1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. 1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided that: * You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." * You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg-tm works. * You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of receipt of the work. * You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. 1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the manager of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. 1.F. 1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain "Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by your equipment. 1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE. 1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further opportunities to fix the problem. 1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. 1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. 1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from people in all walks of life. Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at www.gutenberg.org Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. The Foundation's business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up to date contact information can be found at the Foundation's website and official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without widespread public support and donations to carry out its mission of increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be freely distributed in machine-readable form accessible by the widest array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations ($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt status with the IRS. The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who approach us with offers to donate. International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. Please check the Project Gutenberg web pages for current donation methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and distributed Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. Most people start at our website which has the main PG search facility: www.gutenberg.org This website includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.