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Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
sensitivity
noun
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ ADJECTIVE
chemical
▪ It could be that some underlying defect opens the way to both candidiasis and chemical sensitivity.
▪ This has led some doctors to dismiss the whole idea of chemical sensitivity and claim that all such patients are hyperventilating.
▪ This suggests that there is some other deficiency as well in those with chemical sensitivity - perhaps a defect in another enzyme.
▪ This explanation also fails to explain the observed link with chemical sensitivity.
▪ At present, there is no good explanation for the link between candidiasis, food intolerance and chemical sensitivity.
▪ So it seems unlikely that chemical sensitivity is allergic in origin.
great
▪ Of Hearst the man, Nasaw's careful portrait suggests greater vulnerability and sensitivity than most others have detected.
▪ The leader acts with greater sensitivity to soften the impact of downward power.
▪ He had a real love of children's work and a great sensitivity and insight into its many different qualities.
▪ They observe with great sensitivity the dramas, rhythms, and presence of place.
▪ For greater sensitivity we then performed Southern hybridisation and probing.
▪ Regarding increased supervisor sensitivity, I agree that great sensitivity is needed, even vital.
▪ Negative feedback inhibition would therefore explain the greater sensitivity of amylase secretion for the detection of pancreatic disease.
▪ What may be needed is a greater sensitivity to the structural issues to be resolved by the generation of goodwill resources.
high
▪ The response of the world's climate to the eruption confirmed predictions of high sensitivity to such events.
▪ Its high sensitivity to the issue of advertising dollars has made the Times ruthless in their pursuit.
▪ There is also an increased risk of cancer and high sensitivity to radiation means that radiotherapy can't be used.
▪ For history 2, the best fit occurs at a higher climate sensitivity, as the global forcing is not as great.
▪ Removing these areas of high sensitivity will make targets for reduction of sulphur dioxide emissions easier to reach.
▪ This could show a severe magnetic storm but a higher sensitivity is desirable for serious observation.
▪ Early results have shown that the device has a high sensitivity and specificity.
▪ A second pair of amplifiers provide additional outputs at higher sensitivity.
increased
▪ There is, too, an increased feeling of sensitivity and subtlety.
low
▪ The lower limits of sensitivity for glucagon and atrial natriuretic peptide assay were 3.7 pmol/l and 1.1 pmol/l, respectively.
▪ Worst because sometimes his actions rank low in the sensitivity department.
▪ This low sensitivity rate has encouraged the use of instruments to enhance cell exfoliation.
political
▪ No one should doubt the political sensitivity of tinkering with this most fundamental of issues.
▪ The letter was kept private because of the political sensitivity of the issue, Kerry aides said.
▪ Details of the deal were previously unavailable due to the political sensitivity of unemployment issues in the country.
▪ A degree of political sensitivity is therefore required.
▪ Moreover, it displays a political sensitivity to local authority and community plans.
■ NOUN
analysis
▪ At the very least the government forecasts should provide a sensitivity analysis of the effects of using different base years.
▪ It is therefore important to be able to perform discrete sensitivity analysis and to handle lower bounds.
▪ Again, the general way forward is sensitivity analysis.
▪ Project appraisal involves many calculations which must be carried out a number of times to produce a proper sensitivity analysis.
▪ It can be played competitively between syndicates or used to experiment with changing parameters as in sensitivity analysis.
▪ Decision support techniques, such as sensitivity analysis, will improve the quality of the ultimate decision.
▪ The special methods of sensitivity analysis are only used in the former step so we shall concentrate on that.
food
▪ The doctor will wish to eliminate both these possibilities before looking at other forms of food sensitivity.
▪ The question of Meadow's syndrome in relation to food sensitivity is a difficult issue.
▪ Indeed, most of the physical symptoms of food sensitivity can probably be influenced by the mind.
▪ Our study suggests that food sensitivity is of insufficient importance to warrant putting all patients through elimination diets.
▪ This is only circumstantial evidence for a link between food sensitivity and colic, of course, but it is of interest.
▪ Indeed, many do, because Giardia, like Candida, seems to be linked in some way to food sensitivity.
▪ Given that the doctor has ruled out infection and other likely causes for the diarrhoea, then food sensitivity should be considered.
▪ These relatively recent discoveries have meant that food sensitivity can now be recognized and dealt with far more effectively.
insulin
▪ The drug also improved the insulin sensitivity of the subjects, which could improve their overall health.
■ VERB
develop
▪ Such direct experience helps the nurse to develop sensitivity and self-awareness.
▪ We all developed this sensitivity toward sound.
▪ Or, following Chernobyl, for physics students not to develop a sensitivity to the biological and environmental dimensions of their studies.
▪ Ida Rebecca had small book learning but highly developed sensitivity, particularly when it came to judging outsiders.
▪ Sadly, not all children develop enough sensitivity to other people's values and outlook.
▪ If we wish children to develop awareness and sensitivity, Art and Nature must ramify their schooling from their early days.
increase
▪ The model 214-2F research biomass monitor has increased sensitivity, improved long-term stability and reduced effect of gas hold-up in fermenters.
▪ Regarding increased supervisor sensitivity, I agree that great sensitivity is needed, even vital.
▪ A second stage amplifier provides a gain of around 200, increasing the instrument sensitivity to 100 gamma/volt.
▪ This explains the increased sensitivity to levodopa that some patients exhibit after a period off the drug.
▪ Their creators dispute the discovery of increased pain sensitivity, arguing that the animals just remember injuries for longer.
▪ Serotonin syndrome can be caused by any drug that boosts serotonin levels or increases the sensitivity of serotonin in the brain.
▪ Poverty is also a means of increasing our sensitivity towards others.
▪ It should be possible to greatly increase the sensitivity of such observations.
require
▪ The task of discovering whether an ageing individual has a drink problem requires considerable tact and sensitivity.
▪ This Stanislavskian approach requires both considerable sensitivity of feeling and technique.
▪ Balance is difficult to define in simple terms and requires great sensitivity by journalists if it is to be achieved.
show
▪ Unfortunately, many of their acquaintances in the university showed considerable sensitivity to this latter mission of the Volunteers.
▪ Multiple sampling for exfoliative cytology has been shown to improve the sensitivity of the technique but is time consuming.
▪ They have certainly shown no sensitivity to the fact we are a church.
▪ A number of patients show a more general sensitivity to fungi, and are affected by inhaling spores from moulds.
▪ They showed a sensitivity to people and settings, an appreciation for beauty.
▪ It shows a sensitivity that we have perhaps not always come to expect from Government Departments.
▪ For those who have relatives fighting in the Gulf we must also show support and sensitivity.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ Female employees praise Moore's sensitivity to women's issues.
▪ He misjudged the sensitivity of many Hispanics on the issue.
▪ Rashes and difficulty in breathing can be a result of a chemical sensitivity.
▪ the sensitivity of the telescope's instruments
▪ There's a sensitivity in his music that is remarkable for someone so young.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ But apparent ease of transition has been achieved only with much thought and sensitivity.
▪ Counselling sensitivity and insight can often be of more value than strictly medical knowledge.
▪ Dear Raju, how can I thank you enough for the sensitivity of your soul and of your tiny feet?
▪ Her sensitivity to every type of sensation in the world around her pulls her in many directions at once.
▪ She wore a sunbleached purple turban and presented fingernails long enough to make the spine shiver in sympathetic sensitivity.
▪ The response of the world's climate to the eruption confirmed predictions of high sensitivity to such events.
▪ These laboratory studies have none the less provided some evidence of relationships between risk and sensitivity.
▪ Women have a particular sensitivity to the inherent tension here.
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Sensitivity

Sensitivity \Sen`si*tiv"i*ty\, n. The quality or state of being sensitive; -- used chiefly in science and the arts; as, the sensitivity of iodized silver.

Sensitivity and emotivity have also been used as the scientific term for the capacity of feeling.
--Hickok.

Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
sensitivity

1803, from sensitive + -ity. Sensitivity training attested by 1954.

Wiktionary
sensitivity

n. 1 The quality of being sensitive. 2 The ability of an organism or organ to respond to external stimuli.

WordNet
sensitivity
  1. n. (physiology) responsiveness to external stimuli; "sensitivity to pain" [syn: sensitiveness, sensibility]

  2. the ability to respond to physical stimuli or to register small physical amounts or differences; "a galvanometer of extreme sensitivity"

  3. sensitivity to emotional feelings (of self and others) [syn: sensitiveness]

  4. susceptibility to a pathogen [syn: predisposition]

  5. the ability to respond to affective changes in your interpersonal environment [syn: sensitiveness] [ant: insensitivity, insensitivity]

Wikipedia
Sensitivity

Sensitivity may refer to:

  • Allergic sensitivity, the strength of a reaction to an allergy
  • Sensitivity for a typical transducer is the relationship indicating how much output you get for unit input. In other words, it is the ratio between the small change in electrical output to a small change in physical input signal.
  • Film speed, photographic film's sensitivity to light
  • Information sensitivity
  • Sensitivity, the ability of an organism or organ to respond to external stimuli
  • Sensitivity analysis
  • Sensitivity and specificity, statistical measures of the performance of binary classification tests
  • Sensitivity (control systems), variations in process dynamics and control systems
  • Sensitivity (electronics)
  • Sensitivity (explosives), the degree to which an explosive can be initiated by impact, heat or friction
  • Sensitivity (human), the strength of physical or emotional reaction in humans
  • Sensitivity (instrument), the smallest signal that a certain instrument can measure.
  • "Sensitivity" (Shapeshifters song), the fourth single from music group Shapeshifters
  • "Sensitivity" (song), a song by rhythm and blues singer Ralph Tresvant
  • "Sensitized", a song by Kylie Minogue from X
Sensitivity (electronics)

The sensitivity of an electronic device, such as a communications system receiver, or detection device, such as a PIN diode, is the minimum magnitude of input signal required to produce a specified output signal having a specified signal-to-noise ratio, or other specified criteria.

Sensitivity is sometimes improperly used as a synonym for responsivity.

The sensitivity of a microphone is usually expressed as the sound field strength in decibels (dB) relative to 1 V/ Pa (Pa = N/ m) or as the transfer factor in millivolts per pascal (mV/Pa) into an open circuit or into a 1 kilohm load.

The sensitivity of a loudspeaker is usually expressed as dB / 2.83 V at 1 metre. This is not the same as the electrical efficiency; see Efficiency vs sensitivity.

The sensitivity of a hydrophone is usually expressed as dB re 1 V/µPa.

Sensitivity in a receiver is normally defined as the minimum input signal S required to produce a specified signal-to-noise S/N ratio at the output port of the receiver and is defined as the mean noise power at the input port of the receiver times the minimum required signal-to-noise ratio at the output of the receiver:


$$S_i = k(T_a+T_{rx})B{\cdot}\frac{S_o}{N_o}$$

where

S = sensitivity [W] k = Boltzmann's constant T = equivalent noise temperature in [K] of the source (e.g. antenna) at the input of the receiver T = equivalent noise temperature in [K] of the receiver referred to the input of the receiver B = bandwidth [Hz] $\frac{S_o}{N_o}$ = Required SNR at output [-]

Because receiver sensitivity indicates how faint an input signal can be to be successfully received by the receiver, the lower power level, the better. Lower power for a given S/N ratio means better sensitivity since the receiver's contribution is smaller. When the power is expressed in dBm the larger the absolute value of the negative number, the better the receive sensitivity. For example, a receiver sensitivity of −98 dBm is better than a receive sensitivity of −95 dBm by 3 dB, or a factor of two. In other words, at a specified data rate, a receiver with a −98 dBm sensitivity can hear signals that are half the power of those heard by a receiver with a −95 dBm receiver sensitivity.

Sensitivity (radio receiver)
Sensitivity (explosives)

Sensitivity of explosives is the degree to which an explosive can be initiated by impact, heat, or friction.

Sensitivity, along with stability and brisance are three of the most significant properties of explosives that affect their use and application. All explosive compounds have a certain amount of energy required to initiate. If an explosive is too sensitive, it may go off accidentally. A safer explosive is less sensitive and will not explode if accidentally dropped or mishandled. However, such explosives are more difficult to initiate intentionally.

Sensitivity (song)

"Sensitivity" is the title of a number-one single by Ralph Tresvant. It was the first single from the self-titled debut album of the New Edition frontman since the split of the group. The hit song spent one week at number one on the US R&B chart. It also reached number four on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number eighteen in the UK Singles Chart. In 2005, British electronic duo Lemon Jelly sampled "Sensitivity" in their track '90 - A Man Like Me. In October 2004 "Sensitivity" appeared in popular videogame Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, playing on R&B/ Soul radio station CSR 103.9. The song is also known for being covered by Tejano singer Selena, who performed it with her band Los Dinos on April 7, 1991 in San Antonio, Texas.

Sensitivity (control systems)

The controller parameters are typically matched to the process characteristics and since the process may change, it is important that the controller parameters are chosen in such a way that the closed loop system is not sensitive to variations in process dynamics. One way to characterize sensitivity is through the nominal sensitivity peak M:

$M_s = \max_{0 \leq \omega < \infty} \left| S(j \omega) \right| = \max_{0 \leq \omega < \infty} \left| \frac{1}{1 + G(j \omega)C(j \omega)} \right|$

where G(s) and C(s) denote the plant and controller's transfer function in a basic closed loop control System, using unity negative feedback.

The sensitivity function S, which appears in the above formula also describes the transfer function from measurement noise to process output, where measurement noise is fed into the system through the feedback and the process output is noisy. Hence, lower values of ∣S∣ suggest further attenuation of the measurement noise. The sensitivity function also tells us how the disturbances are influenced by feedback. Disturbances with frequencies such that ∣S(jω)∣ is less than one are reduced by an amount equal to the distance to the critical point  − 1 and disturbances with frequencies such that ∣S(jω)∣ is larger than one are amplified by the feedback.

thumb|center|upright=3.0|alt=A basic closed loop control System, using unity negative feedback. C(s) and G(s) denote compensator and plant transfer functions, respectively.|A basic closed loop control System, using unity negative feedback. C(s) and G(s) denote compensator and plant transfer functions, respectively.

It is important that the largest value of the sensitivity function be limited for a control system and it is common to require that the maximum value of the sensitivity function, M, be in a range of 1.3 to 2.

Usage examples of "sensitivity".

The American example is no criterion for Europe, for being a colony, it is an area of low Cultural sensitivity, with correspondingly less Cultural force and assimilative power.

Sels, you know as well as I do that your sensitivity when I so much as glance at Bett is almost paranoid.

What one finds in their work is always, first of all, a direct sensitivity to the material before them, and then a continual self-examination of their methodology and practice, a constant attempt to keep their work responsive to the material and not to a doctrinal preconception.

Amid the clutter of the thousands of minds aboard Outbound Flight, even Jedi sensitivity will be blunted.

By a process of careful selection, he would have to requisition jurors of compassion and sensitivity whose minds would be open to fresh concepts and whose imaginations would permit them to take the plunge into the penumbra of the occult and whose religious backgrounds would not cause them to discount the supernatural as entirely unthinkable.

The more sensitive a photoreceptor can be made the better, and one method of increasing the sensitivity is to increase the amount of light falling upon the visual pigment.

Her mind is of precisionist grade and is of greater sensitivity than my own.

Buckley child, her pronator teres was definitely out of commission, and right thankful she was, too, that it had lost its agonizing sensitivity.

With fingertips of suprahuman sensitivity, he could feel the little pulses of power below those slats of thin metal and ceramic and wood, like blood through capillaries.

The air veritably crackles with imminencedo you deny your sensitivity to that, Malazan?

It was something no outsider could ever detect, and even a Bloodletter lacked the sensitivity until the Hyarke was near beginning.

Such heightened sensitivity as compensation for blindness was used earlier by the British author Ernest Bramah, who created the blind detective Max Carrados, and later by the American writer Baynard Kendrick, whose sightless sleuth was Captain Duncan Maclain.

It was a show, Corvus knew: underneath the genteel exterior was a man with all the refinement and sensitivity of a ferret.

Recent behavioral experiments using short but strong magnetic pulses in transduction of geomagnetic field information to the nervous system, and both behavioral and direct electrophysiological experiments indicate sensitivity thresholds to DC magnetic fields down to a few nT.

This stretching taut of the penile skin significantly increases the sensitivity of the frenulum and glans as he forms a ring with his thumb and index finger and clasps just below the corona.