SELECTIVITY

The word 'selectivity' has several meanings:

★ Selectivity, the ability to notice/distinguish small differences. Also the words selectiveness, refinement and discrimination are used. Discrimination is also a cultural term.

★ Electronic selectivity

★ In a database index, a measure for how many records will be retrieved for a given value of an attribute.

★ In natural sciences selectivity characterises either how selective reactions occur amongst several pathways which are typical in particular for organic reactions; or selectivity characterises how selective one particular compound is recognized, or bound, by something else, e.g. by a protein, in a supramolecular host-guest complex, or by parts of a sensor. High selectivity is often called specificity.

★ Selectivity (pharmacology) in pharmacology it is the preference of a drug for one mechanism of action over others that cause side effects.