1649-1734

English physician who invented a "pulse-watch" to transform the ancient art of feeling the pulse into a quantitative measurement. Floyer invented a watch with a second hand in order to help physicians count the pulse. In 1707 he published his Physician's Pulse Watch as a way to help other physicians learn how to measure the pulse. Floyer believed that with accurate pulse measurements physicians could develop treatment regimens for their patients that would return an unhealthy pulse to a more normal state. Floyer also wrote about geriatrics, asthma, and emphysema.