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Synergy
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Synergy
Synergy (from the Greek synergos, συνεργός meaning working together,
circa 1660) refers to the phenomenon in which two or more discrete
influences or agents acting together create an effect greater than that
predicted by knowing only the separate effects of the individual agents.
It is originally a scientific term. Often (but not always, see
Toxicologic synergy, below) the prediction is the sum of the effects
each is able to create independently. The opposite of synergy is
antagonism, the phenomenon where two agents in combination have an
overall effect which is less than that predicted from their individual
effects. Synergism stems from the 1657 theological doctrine that human
will cooperates with the Divine Grace in regeneration[1]. The term began
to be used in the broader, non-theological, sense by 1925. Synergy can
also mean:
* A mutually advantageous conjunction where the whole is greater than
the sum of the parts.
* A dynamic state in which combined action is favored over the sum of
individual component actions.
* Behavior of whole systems unpredicted by the behavior of their parts
taken separately. More accurately known as emergent behavior[1]
Examples
Drug synergism occurs when drugs can interact in ways that enhance or
magnify one or more effects, or side effects, of those drugs. This is
sometimes exploited in combination preparations, such as Codeine mixed
with Acetaminophen or Ibuprofen to enhance the action of codeine as a
pain reliever. This is often seen with recreational drugs, where 5-HTP,
a Serotonin precursor often used as an antidepressant, is often used
prior to, during, and shortly after recreational use of MDMA as it
allegedly increases the "high" and decreases the "comedown" stages of
MDMA use (although most anecdotal evidence has pointed to 5-HTP
moderately muting the effect of MDMA). Other examples include the use of
Cannabis with LSD, where the active chemicals in cannabis enhance the
hallucinatory experience of LSD-use.
An example of negative effects of synergy is if more than one depressant
drug is used that affects the Central Nervous System (CNS), for example
alcohol and Valium. The combination can cause a greater reaction than
simply the sum of the individual effects of each drug if they were used
separately. In this particular case, the most serious consequence of
drug synergy is exaggerated respiratory depression, which can be fatal
if left untreated.
Pest synergy, for example, would occur in a biological host organism
population, where the introduction of parasite A may cause 10%
fatalities of the individuals, and parasite B may also cause 10% loss.
When both parasites are present, the losses are observed to be
significantly greater than the expected 20%, and it is said that the
parasites in combination have a synergistic effect. An example is
beekeeping in North America where three foreign parasites of the
honeybee, acarine mite, tracheal mite and the small hive beetle, all
were introduced within a short period of time.
Toxicologic synergy is of concern to the public and regulatory agencies
because chemicals individually considered safe might pose unacceptable
health or ecological risk when exposure is to a combination. Articles in
scientific and lay journals include many definitions of chemical or
toxicologic synergy, often vague or in conflict with each other. Because
toxic interactions are defined relative to the expectation under "no
interaction," a determination of synergy (or antagonism) depends on what
is meant by "no interaction." The United States Environmental Protection
Agency has one of the more detailed and precise definitions of toxic
interaction, designed to facilitate risk assessment. In their guidance
documents, the no-interaction default assumption is dose addition, so
synergy means a mixture response that exceeds that predicted from dose
addition. The EPA emphasizes that synergy does not always make a mixture
dangerous, nor does antagonism always make the mixture safe; each
depends on the predicted risk under dose addition.
For example, a consequence of pesticide use is the risk of health
effects. During the registration of pesticides in the US exhaustive
tests are performed to discern health effects on humans at various
exposure levels. A regulatory upper limit of presence in foods is then
placed on this pesticide. As long as residues in the food stay below
this regulatory level, health effects are deemed highly unlikely and the
food is considered safe to consume.
However in normal agricultural practice it is rare to use only a single
pesticide. During the production of a crop several different materials
may be used. Each of them has had determined a regulatory level at which
they would be considered individually safe. In many cases, a commercial
pesticide is itself a combination of several chemical agents, and thus
the safe levels actually represent levels of the mixture. In contrast,
combinations created by the end user, such as a farmer, are rarely
tested as that combination. The potential for synergy is then unknown or
estimated from data on similar combinations. This lack of information
also applies to many of the chemical combinations to which humans are
exposed, including residues in food, indoor air contaminants, and
occupational exposures to chemicals. Some groups think that the rising
rates of cancer, asthma and other health problems may be caused by these
combination exposures; others have other explanations. This question
will likely be answered only after years of exposure by the population
in general and research on chemical toxicity, usually performed on
animals.
Human synergy relates to interacting humans. For example, if person A
alone is too short to reach an apple on a tree and person B is too short
as well. Once person B sits on the shoulders of person A, they are more
than tall enough to reach the apple. In this example, the product of
their synergy would be one apple. Another case would be two politicians.
If each is able to gather one million votes on their own, but together
they were able to appeal to 2.5 million voters, their synergy would have
produced 500,000 more votes than had they each worked independently.
A third form of human synergy is when one person is able to complete two
separate tasks by doing one action. For example, if a person was asked
by a teacher and his boss at work to write an essay on how he could
improve his work, that would be considered synergy.
Synergy usually arises when two persons with different complementary
skills cooperate. The fundamental example is cooperation of men and
women in a couple. In business, cooperation of people with
organizational and technical skills happens very often. In general, the
most common reason why people cooperate is that it brings a synergy. On
the other hand, people tend to specialize just to be able to form groups
with high synergy (see also division of labor and teamwork).
Corporate synergy occurs when corporations interact congruently. A
corporate synergy refers to a financial benefit that a corporation
expects to realize when it merges with or acquires another corporation.
This type of synergy is a nearly ubiquitous feature of a corporate
acquisition and is a negotiating point between the buyer and seller that
impacts the final price both parties agree to. There are two distinct
types of corporate synergies:
* Revenue: a revenue synergy refers to the opportunity of a combined
corporate entity to generate more revenue than its two predecessor
standalone companies would be able to generate. For example, if company
A sells product X through its sales force, company B sells product Y,
and company A decides to buy company B then the new company could use
each sales person to sell products X and Y thereby increasing the
revenue that each sales person generates for the company.
* Cost: a cost synergy refers to the opportunity of a combined corporate
entity to reduce or eliminate expenses associated with running a
business. Cost synergies are realized by eliminating positions that are
viewed as duplicate within the merged entity. Examples include the head
quarters office of one of the predecessor companies, certain executives,
the human resources department, or other employees of the predecessor
companies. This is related to the economic concept of Economies of
Scale.
Computers and humans
Synergy can also be defined as the combination of human strengths and
computer strengths. Computers can process data much faster than humans,
but lack common sense. When a person uses a computer, the person’s
thoughts are the input for the computer, where it is translated into
efficient processing of large amounts of data. Other humans must first
set up the methods for processing.
Synergy in the media
Synergy is the process by which a media institution tries to use various
products to sell one another (e.g. film and soundtrack and video game).
Walt Disney pioneered synergistic marketing techniques in the 1930s by
granting dozens of firms the right to use his Mickey Mouse character in
products and ads, and continued to market Disney media through licensing
arrangements. These products can help advertise the film itself and thus
help to increase the film's sales. For example, the Spider-Man films had
toys of webshooters and figures of the characters made, as well as
posters and games.
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