sensitivity

Noun

sensitivity (countable and uncountable, plural sensitivities)

1. The quality or state of being sensitive; sensitiveness.
   • In any event, the incident, and the media attention it attracted, highlights the sensitivity of language politics in Singapore and is reflective of the fact that this sensitivity extends to campus life.2019, Li Huang, James Lambert, “Another Arrow for the Quiver: A New Methodology for Multilingual Researchers”, in Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, →DOI, page 3
   • Owing to sensitivities about the force's capabilities, Russell is unable to say how many drones BTP has, or where and when they operate. But he does confide that the force works hand in hand with the helicopter service, and its ability to deploy drones is getting quicker.2022 February 9, Tom Allett, “The BTP's eyes and ears in the air”, in RAIL, number 950, page 50

   Synonyms:

   delicacy

2. The ability of an organism or organ to respond to external stimuli.
   • The single-imaging optic of the mammalian eye offers some distinct visual advantages. Such lenses can take in photons from a wide range of angles, increasing light sensitivity. They also have high spatial resolution, resolving incoming images in minute detail.2013 July-August, Fenella Saunders, “Tiny Lenses See the Big Picture”, in American Scientist, archived from the original on 13 Aug 2014
   • A coenzyme that exists in all living cells, NAD+ plays a central role in the body’s biological processes, such as regulating cellular energy, increasing insulin sensitivity and reversing mitochondrial dysfunction.2022 June 2, Sandee LaMotte, “The ‘Benjamin Button’ effect: Scientists can reverse aging in mice. The goal is to do the same for humans”, in CNN
   1. Vulnerability to medical treatment: Synonym of susceptibility.
3. The probability, in a binary classification test, of a true positive being correctly identified.
   • Coordinate term: specificity
4. The degree of response of an instrument to a change in an input signal.
   • Up to 1,884 microplastic particles were found per cubic metre of seawater in some locations, up to 18 times higher than in similar tests during the last Ocean Race, which ended in 2018. Scientists noted that the sensitivity of their instruments is now higher.2023 June 5, Yvonne Gordon, “Microplastics found in every sample of water taken during Ocean Race”, in The Guardian
5. The rate at which the player's facing direction or position changes relative to input device movement.
   • Since he played with high sensitivity, he only needed to move the mouse a tiny distance to rotate a full 360 degrees.
6. The degree of response of a film etc. to light of a specified wavelength.