State archaeologists dive into wreck site

From Carolina Coastline.com:  State archaeologists dive into wreck site

BEAUFORT — State underwater archaeologists headed out Tuesday in search of artifacts at the Queen Anne’s Revenge shipwreck in Beaufort Inlet.
This is the third week of an eight-week dive expedition to the shipwreck sailed and eventually run aground by the infamous 18th century British pirate Blackbeard.
While the ship was sunk off the coast of Fort Macon in 1718, it wasn’t until its discovery in 1996 that it began giving up secrets on the Golden Age of Piracy.
Since its discovery about 25 feet underwater, state archaeologists have recovered hundreds of thousands of artifacts, including several cannons, a ship’s bell and anchor. Divers have excavated more than 50 percent of the site and hope to complete another 20 percent by Oct. 26, when the expedition ends.
“We should have about 35 percent of the site left when we finish this fall,” said QAR field director Wendy Welsh, who works for the N.C. Underwater Archaeology Branch, which is under the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources.
This fall’s expedition has a new director, just announced Tuesday by the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources in Raleigh. John W. Morris III was named deputy state archaeologist and head of the state’s Underwater Archaeology Branch at Kure Beach.
He replaces Dr. Mark Wilde-Ramsing, who retired in July. Among his many duties, Mr. Morris will oversee research on the Queen Anne’s Revenge. He’s expected to join archaeologists later this week (See story this page).
So far during this expedition divers have retrieved several large ballast stones, which were used to stabilize the ship. They’ve also brought up numerous concretions, which are pieces of compressed sand and dirt filled with smaller artifacts such as cannonballs and barrel hoops.
Ms. Welsh said the public can keep up with highlights of the dive on a redesigned QAR website, www.qaronline.org, as well as Facebook and Twitter accounts.
State archaeologist Chris Southerly said divers were working the northeast side of the wreck site, which would have been the lower portion of the ship.
“That’s why there’s a lot of ballast stones,” he said. “When the ship ran aground, it rolled over to port side before it started deteriorating. The artifacts fell out from the ship.”
Ms. Welsh said so far the expedition has run smoothly, but no large artifacts would be retrieved during this expedition for two main reasons. First, the team is using a smaller vessel, an N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries barge that is not equipped to handle larger artifacts. Second, there’s no space to place any more large artifacts in the QAR conservation lab in Greenville.
Archaeologists are attempting to get all artifacts up as quickly as possible because the site is deteriorating from the numerous hurricanes that have hit the coast. But because of state budget shortfalls and numerous tropical systems that have disrupted dive expeditions, it’s been a challenge.
This year’s expedition received no state funding. Friends of the Queen Anne’s Revenge, the nonprofit organization created to raise funds for the project, as well as grants and donations by private businesses and individuals are funding it.
Once artifacts go through a lengthy conservation process, they are displayed at the N.C. Maritime Museum in Beaufort, responsible for curatorship of artifacts.
Divers originally planned to stage dives out of the U.S. Coast Guard Station at Sector North Carolina, Sector Field Office Fort Macon. But they decided instead to stage from Gallants Channel property owned by the N.C. Maritime Museum.
The QAR was discovered by Intersal Inc. of Boca Raton, Fla., a private maritime salvage and research institute, in November 1996, and then turned over to the state of North Carolina because of its historical significance.
The QAR was originally a French slave ship, captured by Blackbeard in 1717 and renamed the Queen Anne’s Revenge. Blackbeard later settled in Bath and received a governor’s pardon. Volunteers with the Royal Navy killed Blackbeard in November 1718 on Ocracoke. That was about five months after the Queen Anne’s Revenge sank.
For dive updates, go to www.qaronline.org or follow the project on Facebook and Twitter.

 

Unique Tombs Discovered in Philippines

From Sci Tech: Unique Tombs Discovered in Philippines

A village that may be 1,000 years old has been found in the Philippines. Among the artifacts unearthed, rectangular tombs carved into limestone outcrops jutting from the forest ground are the first indication that Filipinos at that time practiced a more advanced burial ritual than thought, and that they used metal tools to carve the coffins.

Archaeologists have unearthed remnants of what they believe is a 1,000-year-old village on a jungle-covered mountaintop in the Philippines with limestone coffins of a type never before found in this Southeast Asian nation, officials said Thursday.
National Museum official Eusebio Dizon said the village on Mount Kamhantik, near Mulanay town in Quezon province, could be at least 1,000 years old based on U.S. carbon dating tests done on a human tooth found in one of 15 limestone graves he and other archaeologists have dug out since last year.
The discovery of the rectangular tombs, which were carved into limestone outcrops jutting from the forest ground, is important because it is the first indication that Filipinos at that time practiced a more advanced burial ritual than previously thought and that they used metal tools to carve the coffins.
Past archaeological discoveries have shown Filipinos of that era used wooden coffins in the country's mountainous north and earthen coffins and jars elsewhere, according to Dizon, who has done extensive archaeological work and studies in the Philippines and 27 other countries over the past 35 years.
Aside from the tombs, archaeologists have found thousands of shards of earthen jars, metal objects and bone fragments of humans, monkeys, wild pigs and other animals in the tombs. The limestone outcrops had round holes where wooden posts of houses or sheds may have once stood, Dizon told The Associated Press in an exclusive interview.
The tombs were similar to ancient sarcophagus, which have become popular tourist attractions in Egypt and Europe, although the ones found in Mulanay were simple box-like limestone coffins without mythological or elaborate human images on the tops and sides.
Archaeologists have only worked on a small portion of a five-hectare (12-acre) forest area, where Mulanay officials said more artifacts and limestone coffins could be buried.
A preliminary National Museum report said its top archaeologists found "a complex archaeological site with both habitation and burial remains from the period of approximately 10th to the 14th century ... the first of its kind in the Philippines having carved limestone tombs."
The discovery has been welcomed with excitement in Mulanay, a sleepy coastal town of 50,000 people in an impoverished mountainous region that until recently was best known as a major battleground between army troops and Marxist rebels.
"Before, if you mention this region, people will say `Oh, that's NPA country,'" Mulanay Mayor Joselito Ojeda said, referring to the New People's Army rebels. "But that era is past and now we can erase that image and this archaeological site will be a big help."
Mulanay tourism officer Sanny Cortez said that after archaeologists have finished their work in a few years, his town plans to turn Mount Kamhantik's peak into an archaeological and ecotourism park. A museum would also be built nearby.
Despite the loss of thick tree covers in the 1,300-foot (396-meter) mountain's foothills as villagers clear the jungle for homes and farms, the forested mountain still harbors a rich wildlife, including rare hornbills, wild cats and huge numbers of cave bats, including a white one recently seen by environmental officials. The mountaintop offers a scenic view of Tayabas Bay and the peak of Mayon volcano, famous for its near-perfect cone, Ojeda said.
The archaeological site is part of 280 hectares (692 acres) of forest land that was declared a government-protected area in 1998 to keep away treasure hunters and slash-and-burn farmers. Treasure hunters looking for gold exposed some of the limestone tombs years ago, but it was only last year that Manila-based archaeologists started to unearth the graves and artifacts and realize the significance of the find.
Treasure hunting has damaged many archaeological sites in the country. In the early 1990s, Filipino archaeologists led by Dizon discovered that 2,000-year-old burial jars with unique human face designs had been destroyed by treasure hunters in a cave in Maitum town in southern Sarangani province.
Archaeologists worked for a few years to glue the sack loads of clay shards piece by piece and restored more than 150 ancient burial jars to shape. Some of the Maitum jars are displayed at the National Museum in Manila with a plan to exhibit them in France next year, Dizon said.

 

'Lord of the Rings Online' revives the Buried Treasure event in latest patch

From the Verge:  'Lord of the Rings Online' revives the Buried Treasure event in latest patch

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The Lord of the Rings Online has revived the Buried Treasure events in which players can hunt for hidden goodies, instating them as events that will occur periodically throughout the year, developer Turbine announced today.

The return of the hunt brings new rewards to dig up as well as a number of bug fixes. The current event is now live across all servers and will end on September 23rd.
The Treasure Field is in the low-lands of the Ered Luin, but players who don't want to make the trek on foot can hitch a ride with swift-travel non-playable characters located in Bree, Celondim, Michel Delving, and Thorin's Hall. Treasure caches will vary in size, with larger ones being rarer, but there is only ever one Huge Cache on the field at a time. The rarity of treasure items depend on the cache size.
Lord of the Rings Online launched in 2007 for PC

 

Scuba snaps: Diver finds family's lost camera at the bottom of the sea two days after it fell overboard - and it still works

From the Mirror (UK):  Scuba snaps: Diver finds family's lost camera at the bottom of the sea two days after it fell overboard - and it still works

A scuba diver is hoping to reunite a family with their treasured holiday snaps –after finding a camera at the bottom of the sea.
Stunned Mark Milburn, 49, spotted the Samsung camera lying on rocks 30ft underwater off the coast of Falmouth, Cornwall.
He took it home to dry out and was stunned to find the memory card was still working - and downloaded more than 800 family snaps.
They include images of a family enjoying a holiday to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park in Florida.
But there were also photos - taken just two days before - of the same family on a boat trip on the nearby Helford River in Cornwall.

Mission: Diver Mark Milburn wants to reunite the camera with its owner

SWNS

  Mark, who runs AtlanticScuba diving centre in Falmouth, believes they dropped the camera overboard and it was washed out to sea.
He said: "I was on a routine dive when I spotted this small shiny box on the bed. I thought it was a camera case at first.
"But when I picked it up and it was an actual camera. Obviously I figured the sea water would have done irreparable damage.
"I got back home and dried it out and when the memory card popped out there were all these photos on there.
"The pictures seemed to show family holidays around the world. Some look like Universal Studios in America and there's some local stuff as well.
"Some were taken from a boat, and I recognised the Helford River in the background. From the dates on the images they were taken just two days before.
"I guess they must have dropped the camera overboard and never thought for a minute they'd see it again.
"It would be nice to return the card and the camera to them so they can their memories back."
The camera contains hundreds of pictures including Darth Vadar at a theme park, a steam train, dolphins and a school hall.
It was among 30kg (66lb) of waste collected by a group of local divers carrying out an underwater beach clean off Falmouth.
They also found plastic bags, tin cans, golf balls - and an iPhone.
Mark, of Falmouth, said the rubbish is potentially dangerous to marine life and divers themselves.
He said: "It's a big problem. We find tin cans, but the bodies of the cans rot away leaving sharp edges that can cut your feet
"Big fish will swallow them thinking they're little fish because they're shiny."

Posts resume 24 Sep 2012

I have to take my mom up to visit her elder sister in Box Elder which is near Rapid City. They have no internet up there.

Posts resume 24 Sep 2012.

Thanks for your patience!

Read more here:

Dentures could be the most valuable treasure found underwater

From Keys.net:  Dentures could be the most valuable treasure found underwater

“Check this out!”
I swam toward my daughter and looked at the shiny item pinched between her fingers.
“What is it? A rock?”
“No, it’s a shark tooth.”
“IN OUR POOL? How did a shark tooth get in our pool?”
“Calm down mom. It’s a part of a necklace. See the silver clasp?”
“Ahhh.”
I’m not sure why I was surprised. I mean, we live in the Keys. Finding treasures underwater is part of life here.
Treasure hunters dream about living here. In fact, one of the first, Art McKee, found enough treasures underwater to open his own small museum, eventually expanding it and naming it Museum of Sunken Treasure located in Plantation Key. This amazing museum, built like a castle, is now an amazing school — Treasure Village Montessori.
I keep telling my daughter it is quite an honor to be attending this school, which once stored real sunken treasures. Think of the history. Think of the powerful vibes embedded in the very soil the school stands on. It’s almost as valuable as finding the treasures themselves — right? (Wrong. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out discovering a huge ruby underwater is far more interesting than learning 4th grade mathematics in an old museum.)
Still, treasure hunters are almost mythical to me and it is a little exciting to know the king of all underwater treasure hunters, Mel Fisher, found his mother lode right off of the Florida Keys. He has literally put us on the map with his unbelievable finds. And, let me stress, UNBELIEVABLE.
I mean, the ships back in those days really knew how to travel. Those ships carried emeralds, silver and gold bars, heavy chains encrusted with jewels and gold. Chests were crammed full of gems and coins and goblets. The list is endless. Talk about stress for the captains of those ships. No wonder they went down with the ship… their punishment would be worse than death if they survived after their ship sunk filled with those rich goodies.
Fast forward to our large ships today which are mostly cruise ships filled with fat tourists wearing nothing but flip flops and Bermuda shorts. No personal trunks filled with valuables like crowns and jewels. The closest thing to a silver bar would be a bag of Hershey’s Kisses.
And forget about golden goblets. Just plastic glasses, booze and buffet tables on these cruise ships. The only people interested in salvaging the goods off a sunken cruise ship would be my husband looking for bottles of vodka and rum still intact and me, looking for a pork chop.
My husband and I have been diving for years, but we’ve never found anything as exciting as Mel Fisher’s hauls. Our finds have been a lot of beer cans — sadly all empty — and everyday items like cell phones, scarves, rusty anchors, and even a few bikini tops. Oh, and a LOT of hats and glasses. Somehow, people always forget how easy it is to lose these things on boats. Someone should open a shop to resell all of these items and call it “CHEAP HEAP FROM THE DEEP.”
I’m not saying that these random things lost overboard aren’t costly to lose. They may not be emeralds, but my family (meaning, my husband) has easily lost hundreds of dollars worth of prescription glasses and personal items, which seriously hurts the pocketbook when we’ve had to replace them.
Honestly, it’s not just my husband. It’s the name of the boat game. No one is exempt from helplessly watching expensive items fly off boats and into the deep, forever lost.
A few years ago, my friend and her husband decided to come down for a visit. The odd thing is they brought his brother, who happened to be an Elvis impersonator. You can imagine our surprise when we saw him board our boat in full Elvis attire for a day of fishing. Initially, we felt a little underdressed wearing our standard swimming suits and t-shirts. But, we quickly discovered how fun it was to have Elvis on board. He sang. He danced. He entertained us during the entire trip out to the fishing spot while the boat was moving.
Sadly, as soon as the boat stopped, so did Elvis’ singing. Instead, he barfed. Over and over and over. Let me tell you, it is NOT pretty to see a grown man in sequins getting sick over the side of a boat. Unfortunately, his dentures also went over the side of the boat in the process.
We may have lost the dentures, but being able to tell the story is as good as winning the lottery. Another treasure lost and found.
So, here’s my theory… since my daughter has been born and raised in the Florida Keys — home of infamous underwater treasure hunters — and she even goes to school in an old treasure museum… don’t we have a good chance of her being the next great Mel Fisher? I mean, if she can find an actual shark tooth in our above ground, plastic lined pool… can you imagine what she’ll find when she’s finally able to go scuba diving in the ocean?
Fingers crossed it’s a chunk of gold and not “a hunk, a hunk of dennn-tures.”

 

Historic visions of the future

From Yahoo News:  Historic visions of the future

A set of 19th century postcards has revealed that's just what French artists thought we'd be doing at the turn of the 21st century. The set of postcards, produced between 1899 and 1910, predict what life would be like in Paris in the year 2000 - and there are some fairly bizarre scenes. The year 2000 may have been and gone - but no one has yet invented a flying fireman, or started playing croquet underwater. And while Parisians haven't as yet replaced the fireplace in their homes with sticks of glowing radium, as one portrait shows, there are some portraits which aren't too far off the mark.

Go to the link to see all the post cards. The first one below is underwater croquet, the second one is long distance video. etc

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Ancient Roman Shipwreck Found in Future Parking Lot Site

From the Maritime Executive:  Ancient Roman Shipwreck Found in Future Parking Lot Site

A team of Inrap archaeologists is currently excavating part of the Antique port of Antibes (Alpes-Maritimes). This research, curated by the State (Drac Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur), is being conducted in advance of the construction of an underground parking lot by QPark. The archaeologists will work for seven months at the site of "Pré aux Pêcheurs”.
The Antique Antipolis…
Antibes is the Antique Antipolis, a Greek trading post founded by the Phocaeans of Massalia. The date of its establishment is still uncertain, but it followed an indigenous habitat located in the high areas of the current city. Along the Provençal shoreline, Antipolis occupied an advantageous location on the maritime routes linking Marseille to the Italian coast. Like the Saint-Roch cove, it had a natural port that was protected from the dominant winds. The prosperity of the Greek and then Roman city was largely based on the dynamic activity of its maritime commerce, as well as on the transformation of sea products, fish salting and the fabrication of garum (a fish based sauce).
… and its port
The archaeologists are currently exploring, over 5000 m2, the bottom of an Antique port basin, which was progressively covered with sand. This obvious waste dump has yielded many objects – waste thrown from mooring boats or bits of cargo lost during transshipments – and provides information on the daily activities of the sailors and the maritime commerce. The layers of archaeological objects have been accumulating since the 3rd century BC until the 6th century AD. Several tens of thousands of objects of all kinds that were sunken underwater in the Saint-Roch cove have already been recovered, including merchandise originating from periphery of the Mediterranean basin. They alone illustrate the dynamic nature of the Antique port and commerce in this part of the Mediterranean.
The sediments excavated were located under the sea level and were not dried until the construction of the parking lot. These specific anaerobic conditions contributed to the preservation of organic materials and thus allowed the recovery of objects that are not preserved in excavations on land, including amphora corks, leather shoe soles and wood objects.
The shipwreck
In the last area explored by the Inrap archaeologists, the wreck of a Roman vessel was discovered. The boat, preserved over more than 15 m in length, is lying on its side in a shallow area (less than 1.6 m under the Antique sea level). In the context of a partnership with the Centre Camille Jullian, Inrap and a CNRS naval archaeology specialist are collaborating in the analysis and interpretation of this discovery.

The remains consist of a keel and several boards that covered the hull, held together by thousands of pegs inserted into sheave slots cut into the thickness of the boards. Around forty transverse ribs are present, some of which were attached to the keel with metallic pins.
Elements of the ceiling were also identified. The keelson, which served to house the foot of the mast, was not preserved. This vessel was a medium-sized commercial sailboat (20/22 m long, 6/7 m wide, height of the hold approximately 3 m). Conifer was the main wood used in its construction. The wood knots of the hull were reinforced by plaques of lead held in place by small nails. These plaques compensated for the faults of a medium quality wood, which was used for the construction of this vessel because is was easily available and accessible. The tool traces are clearly visible (saw and adze), as is the pitch that was used to protect the hull. These architectural features support the date indicated by the stratigraphy and pottery elements recovered in the levels accumulated after the boat was abandoned – the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD – and allow the vessel to be attributed to the Imperial Roman ships of the western Mediterranean.
The cause of its sinking is still unknown. Did it crash against the shore during a storm? Was it abandoned to rot in a corner of the port? Was it purposefully sunk to serve as a base for a wharf? These two latter hypotheses could explain the absence of cargo. The continuing investigations will surely reveal the answer.
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Queen Anne's Revenge dive expedition begins this week

From Star News Online  Queen Anne's Revenge dive expedition begins this week


Researchers led by the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources' Underwater Archaeology Branch rest a recovered 2,000-pound cannon from the Queen Anne's Revenge on the back of a research vessel on Oct. 26, 2011, in Beaufort. Photo by The Jacksonville Daily News/Chuck Beckley

The artifacts raised from the Queen Anne's Revenge shipwreck site in the coming weeks will be smaller in size but big in excitement.

An eight-week dive expedition begins this week with final preparations for work in Beaufort Inlet at the wreckage of the ship considered to be the flagship of the infamous pirate Blackbeard.
While divers with the N.C. Underwater Archaeology Branch – which is based at Fort Fisher – aren't planning to bring up any of the remaining cannons or anchors during this dive, they will be excavating from the forward hold area on the east side of the wreck site, which correlates to the lower portion of the ship.
The QAR team is expecting to find ballast stones and smaller artifacts, but the excitement is in the unknown as it's a lesser explored area of the shipwreck.

Shifting sands from Isaac reveal 1923 shipwreck

From Yahoo News:  Shifting sands from Isaac reveal 1923 shipwreck

 

GULF SHORES, Ala. (AP) — The pounding surf and currents from Hurricane Isaac on a remote spit of Alabama shoreline has again revealed the wreckage of a schooner that ran aground in 1923, delighting curious tourists and locals.

The schooner Rachel and her eight-man crew ran aground near historic Fort Morgan on Oct. 17, 1923, during a tropical storm. The men were headed to Mobile after a stop in Cuba. While the men aboard the Rachel survived, others on nearby schooners weren't so lucky.

"A tropical storm much like Tropical Storm Isaac that we just went through was hitting the Gulf Coast and a large number of these schooners were out in the Gulf. One was sunk just off Perdido Key and the crew was lost," said Michael Bailey, historian for the Fort Morgan Historical society.

Because the Rachel was so far onshore, its owners could not salvage her, Bailey said. The owners tried selling the wreck with no luck. Later, the Rachel was burned. Bailey isn't sure who burned the ship or ship or why.

Shifting sands and tides eventually buried the Rachel until Hurricane Camille struck the Gulf Coast in 1969 and part of the ship was exposed before she was recovered.
Bailey glimpsed The Rachel for the first time when she was unearthed by Hurricane Frederick in 1979. He began to seriously delve into her history in 2004 after she was unearthed by Hurricane Ivan.
"I saw 20th-century features and thought it could have been from early 1900s," he said. "I found a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers shipwreck study that had a description of The Rachel and learned it was built in Mosspoint, Miss., at the De Angelo Shipyard," he said. Bailey found a relative of the ship's builder who gave him copies of the ship's plans and photographs of the ship.
Although The Rachel was a common ship for her time, the wreck provides a unique look at what life was like along the Gulf Coast almost 90 years ago, Bailey said. He likened schooners of that era to the semi-trucks that fill interstate highways today. The schooners supplied many of the region's industrial and commercial needs. Bailey believes The Rachel had a load of lumber of when she ran aground.
According to local lore, she might also have had alcohol on board with the hope of making a little extra money from the voyage.
"That's not impossible," Bailey said. "She was coming from Cuba and it was during Prohibition."
Hurricane Isaac uncovered more of The Rachel than has been seen in a long time. On a recent afternoon, beachgoers crawled through her charred remains and posed for photographs.
The Rachel might be intentionally recovered with sand because of the danger from scrapes, cuts and bruises her rusted iron skelton and splintered wood poses to tourists, Bailey said. In the meantime, people like John Lamb of Richmond, Ky., are making the most of her reappearance.
Lamb, who was vacationing in the area, took pictures of his young son by the wreck as he thoughtfully explored every inch of The Rachel.
"I think the most interesting thing is that, being from Kentucky, we don't ever see anything like this. We thought we'd come check it out," he said.
Jim Fletcher of Fort Worth, Texas, has a vacation home on the beach and has seen The Rachel after previous storms. Fletcher was excited to find more of the ship exposed after Isaac. He tugged at a orange-tinged and barnacle-encrusted rope to pull more of it from underneath sand before taking picture.

"History is a very fleeting thing and I think you should take advantage of it when you have the opportunity before it is gone forever," he said. "Who knows how long this will be here, maybe it will be covered again and we might not see it in this state for another 100 years."

 

Air India Plane Wreckage From 1966 Found In French Glacier

From HuffPost:  Air India Plane Wreckage From 1966 Found In French Glacier

PARIS -- As the Alpine glacier melted, a curious discovery emerged after decades beneath the ice: a plane wheel, a shoe – and an intact pouch of Indian diplomatic mail from 1966.

It all appears to be part of the wreckage from an Air India plane crash that hikers and a rescue worker found this week on the slopes beneath Mont Blanc.

Rescuer Arnaud Christmann said the hikers alerted the tourist office in Chamonix that they had seen something beneath a glacier that looked like a wheel. He went to investigate and found pieces of the plane and "a gift from the mountain," a bag containing Indian and English newspapers from 1966 and other documents, labeled "diplomatic mail."

The Indian Embassy in Paris confirmed the discovery but gave no details.

98-year-old message in bottle sets world record

Star News Online:  98-year-old message in bottle sets world record

LONDON - It was scooped up from the sea after 98 years, and now officials say a message in a bottle discovered in Scotland has set a world record.

Fisherman Andrew Leaper found the bottle- released in 1914 - in his nets in April while sailing east of the Shetland Islands, which lie off Scotland's northern coast.
Guinness World Records confirmed Thursday the find is the oldest message in a bottle ever recovered, beating a previous record by five years.
It was released in a batch of 1,890 bottles in a government experiment to map the undercurrents of the seas around Scotland.
Inside each bottle, a postcard asks the finder to record details of the discovery and promises a reward of a sixpence. Unfortunately for Leaper, the coin no longer exists.