The Pulse – April 11, 2014

In the lead up to the Affordable Care Act enrollment deadline, we spoke with folks researching plans and trying to decide what level of coverage was right for them, if any. With the deadline now in the rearview mirror, we checked back in with three former subjects to find out what decision they had ultimately made and how their new insurance was effecting their lives.

It’s indisputable that technology improves medical outcomes, but the digital age has yet to make routine doctor visits any less painful. That seems to be changing, though, as some boutique medical plans and practices offer Skype sessions and instant communication with physicians as a “benefit” to their clients. But, some medical experts are concerned that it could be destructive to practicing good medicine.

In a new installment of “Patient Files,” we hear from Dan Dougherty, who’s suffered from epileptic seizures since he was a young boy. Dan’s epilepsy has proven harder than most to get under control with medication, but he says it’s his ability to see the humor in situations, which has helped him survive dark days.

In the week’s science news, we discuss why experts can’t distinguish the revered Stradivarius violins from their (less-pricey) contemporaries, a discovery on one of Saturn’s moons that has us wondering about non-Earthling life in our own solar system, and a scary new-found correlation between kids living in stressful environments and the perceived age of their cells.

Many doctors treating those living on the fringes of society are crashing into a new healthcare paradigm: the idea that what happens in patients’ homes and neighborhoods may be just as important to maintaining their health as what happens inside a hospital.

Also on the show: the state of mobile health devices like the trendy FitBit, an effort to catalog the unfathomably big microbial universe, and, after a winter that left our streets scarred and rutted with potholes, a look at the science behind keeping our roads passable. 

Music from today’s show: 

“Autobahn” – 22:43KraftwerkAlbum AutobahnLabel Philips/Vertigo

“(reprise reprise)” – 1:54Kurt Vile and the ViolatorsAlbum It’s a Big World Out There(And I Am Scared)Label Matador Records

“Wanderlust” – 4:55Wild BeastsAlbum Present TenseLabel Domino

“Year of the Tiger” – 3:28St. VincentAlbum Strange MercyLabel 4AD

“Downs & Ups” – 9:43Cris ForsythAlbum Kenzo DeluxeLabel Northern Spy Records

“Gangsta” – 3:58Tune-YardsAlbum Whokill4AD

“Why Am I Treated So Bad” – 6:05James BrownAlbum The PopcornLabel King Records

“Wake Up Everbody” – 7:23PsychemagikAlbum Cross Town Rebels 122Label Psychemagik

“Replica” – 3:25BeckAlbum Modern GuiltLabel DGC

“Sure as Spring” – 2:28La LuzAlbum Damp Face EPLabel Burger Records