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The floating pulse is easily felt and more full at the superficial level, and it's force decreases slightly at the deeper level. You can also describe it's sensation more clearly by suggesting technique such as: it is full when lifting and diminished when pressing...however, under such conditions it still has root.
The latter method is used by Shen for evaluating the quality of the blood at the middle depth. In this case of a floating pulse, the lifting method is used to analyze the superficial (qi) depth and the pressing implies exploration of what Shen calls the organ depth (deep).
Anne: "Is the pulse that is full when lifting and diminished when pressing more of a sign of blood heat than floating?"
If the pulse is progressively wider at the blood depth and then narrows upon further lifting - it is 'blood heat' (Shen) given further corroborating signs and symptoms (Morris). The floating pulse without root wherein the dominant impulse is in the qi depth is called 'empty' by Hammer....this pulse also gets wider upon lifting - and is floating.
Pulses reflecting normal physiology and a wind cold-or-heat attack will be floating and have root. Loss of root typically designates more serious underlying deficiencies - this is not a salient feature of the floating pulse, rather it is part of more complex pulse patterns.
Will Morris
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