a nonparametric method for comparing the distributions from two samples to see if they are similar. A significant result from a Kolmogorov–Smirnov two-sample test indicates that the two samples are derived from different distributions. In contrast, the Kolmogorov–Smirnov goodness-of-fit test is used when only one sample is available but the larger population distribution is known. [Andrei Kolmogorov and Nikolai Smirnov]