The Pulse

Series produced by WHYY

Series image

Weekly subscribable series.

Host Maiken Scott leads this one-hour, weekly tour of the people and places at the heart of health and science.

The Pulse is a show for curious people who ask: "Yeah, why is that?" Often surprising and always captivating, The Pulse makes science and discovery personal. Produced at WHYY in Philadelphia, the show features scientists, doctors, innovators and storytelling from across the country.

For information about The Pulse please contact Steve Martin at steve@sfmconsulting.com or call 703.715.0827.

For help subscribing please contact PRX at prxhelp@prx.org.


376 Pieces

Order by: Newest First | Oldest First
Piece image
It seems like every week, we hear about new breakthroughs in cancer treatment — new discoveries, new medications, new hopes for a cure. The war on ...

  • Added: Dec 13, 2021
  • Length: 58:59
Piece image
On this rebroadcast of The Pulse- As a materials scientist, Anna Ploszajski was trained to analyze materials on a number of levels — their atomic s...

  • Added: Dec 13, 2021
  • Length: 59:00
Piece image
On this rebroadcast of The Pulse, humans have long tried to mitigate their own destructive impact on the planet through conservation efforts. Often...

  • Added: Dec 13, 2021
  • Length: 59:00
Piece image
In 2018, Owen Rivers woke up in a hospital bed after a fentanyl overdose — and could no longer form new memories. It was a terrifying experience; h...

  • Added: Dec 09, 2021
  • Length: 58:59
Piece image
Living on a planet that’s been inhabited by humans for hundreds of thousands of years means pretty much every piece of ground that you walk on hold...

  • Added: Dec 02, 2021
  • Length: 59:00
Piece image
The human brain has an incredible capacity for processing information, from sensory data, to casual conversations, to everything we hear and read —...

  • Added: Nov 24, 2021
  • Length: 59:00
Piece image
Thanksgiving is near, which means many families will come together with loved ones over a shared meal that celebrates abundance. But along with the...

  • Added: Nov 18, 2021
  • Length: 59:00
Piece image
On this rebroadcast of The Pulse - Humans have been obsessed with Mars from a distance for thousands of years. At first, maybe it was the fact that...

  • Added: Nov 08, 2021
  • Length: 59:00
Piece image
There are 19 million veterans in the U.S. who have served in the armed forces. For many, the military gave them a sense of shared purpose, a strong...

  • Added: Nov 04, 2021
  • Length: 59:00
Piece image
A lot of us had our first taste of remote medical care during the pandemic — telemedicine checkups performed right in our own homes. It has its adv...

  • Added: Oct 28, 2021
  • Length: 59:00
Piece image
The search for solutions to address climate change is urgent. People want action now, something that will move the needle. But every solution that’...

  • Added: Oct 21, 2021
  • Length: 59:00
Piece image
On this rebroadcast of the Pulse - The modern world is made possible by a web of electromagnetic radiation. Your phone, computer, TV, cable box, ra...

  • Added: Oct 13, 2021
  • Length: 59:00
Piece image
Jessie Flynn decided she’d had enough. For years, multiple sclerosis had taken more and more away from her life — her ability to move, her freedom,...

  • Added: Oct 07, 2021
  • Length: 59:00
Piece image
On this rebroadcast of The Pulse - Who becomes a physician in this country — and who never gets that chance? It’s a question a lot of medical schoo...

  • Added: Sep 29, 2021
  • Length: 58:59
Piece image
As a materials scientist, Anna Ploszajski was trained to analyze materials on a number of levels — their atomic structure, their chemical propertie...

  • Added: Sep 23, 2021
  • Length: 59:00
Piece image
It’s one of the first questions we hear on detective shows after a heinous crime has occurred: “What’s the motive?” For hundreds of years, criminol...

  • Added: Sep 16, 2021
  • Length: 59:00
Piece image
The passing of 20 years since the 9/11 terror attacks has meant that some of the wounds cut by that day have closed — others have not. Thousands of...

  • Added: Sep 07, 2021
  • Length: 59:00
Piece image
Sometimes, work can feel like Groundhog Day — different variations of the same thing, day after day. Same commute, same hours, same people, same co...

  • Added: Sep 02, 2021
  • Length: 59:00
Piece image
On this rebroadcast of The Pulse- Energy fuels our lives in ways that seem almost magical. It can transform darkness into light, cold into warmth, ...

  • Added: Aug 25, 2021
  • Length: 59:00
Piece image
We’ve heard it again and again — kids are resilient. But they’re also sensitive, with social and emotional needs every bit as complex as adults'. T...

  • Added: Aug 19, 2021
  • Length: 59:00