Receiver Operating Characteristic Curves

The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve is a method of graphically demonstrating the relationship between sensitivity and specificity. An ROC curve plots the true positive rate (sensitivity) against the false positive rate (1 minus specificity). This graph serves as a nomogram (a graphical representation of numerical relationships).

After choosing a desired cutoff point, the IDS’s sensitivity and specificity can be determined from the graph. The curve’s shape correlates with the accuracy or overall quality of the IDS. A straight line moving up and to the right at 45 degrees implies a useless IDS. In contrast, an IDS in which the ROC curve is tucked into the upper left-hand corner of the plot ...

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