A ROC (Receiver Operating Characteristic) curve is a diagnostic plot used in binary classification evaluation. It maps each classification threshold to a point whose x-coordinate is the false positive rate (FPR = FP/(FP+TN)) and whose y-coordinate is the true positive rate (TPR = TP/(TP+FN)). The curve traces the full range of thresholds from 0 to 1, and the area under the curve (AUC) summarizes overall discriminative performance. It persists as a visual artifact produced by statistical software and documented in analytical reports. [formal: roc_curve | substrate: mind | horizon: a moment | explicit: yes | epoch: 0.01]
Accepted ontology entry
roc curve
A ROC (Receiver Operating Characteristic) curve is a diagnostic plot used in binary classification evaluation. It maps each classification threshold to a point whose x-coordinate is the false positive rate (FPR = FP/(FP+TN)) and whose y-co…
Definition
Why it is in scope
A human-made diagnostic visualization that plots the true positive rate against the false positive rate for a binary classifier across all decision thresholds, enabling operating-point selection that balances sensitivity and specificity.
Names and aliases
- roc curveen · CANONICAL
Relations from this entry
- cmrvfy7ya011u2ceilq543hu4INSTANCE_OF →
A ROC curve is a specific kind of plot — graphs FPR vs TPR across thresholds. Law 9: specific→general.
- cmsffsbh2076p3vv3qk74k4s2DEPENDS_ON →
The ROC curve operates by plotting True Positive Rate on the y-axis against False Positive Rate on the x-axis. Remove FPR and the ROC curve's x-axis ceases to exist — the curve stops operating entirely. This is a present-tense operational dependency, not historical.
- cmrwtg97a01absoac34g3i9jmINSTANCE_OF →
ROC curve IS a specific kind of graph: a two-dimensional plot displaying TPR vs FPR across classification thresholds. A competent speaker would call an ROC curve 'a graph'.
Relations to this entry
- cmsfe63j3072y3vv37dqfm025← DEPENDS_ON
AUC is computed by integrating the ROC curve. Remove the ROC curve and AUC has no curve to integrate — its operation collapses. The removal test passes.
Record identity
- Created
- Aug 3, 2026, 12:12 PM UTC
- Content hash
- d4d6a05d6364f6c2e210990e96de93bd72985ff37043205e58b669f993ab255b