Beverly Whipple

Dr. Beverly Whipple is an American sexologist, certified sexuality educator, and sex researcher whose work has contributed to the scientific understanding of female sexual health and physiology. Whipple completed two master's degrees and a doctorate in psychobiology with a focus on neurophysiology from Rutgers University, building on a background in nursing. Her transition from nursing education to sexuality research began after addressing questions about sexual activity following a heart attack, a subject not covered in nursing curricula at the time. This inquiry led to a career in sexual science and research.

Whipple is credited with coining the term G spot. While she does not claim to be the first to research it, her work on women's health and sexual physiology brought mainstream attention to the subject and contributed to the medical recognition of female pleasure and sensuality. Her paper, "Female ejaculation: a case study," published in The Journal of Sex Research, contains the first published use of the term G-Spot. In her book "The G Spot and Other Recent Discoveries About Human Sexuality," co-authored with Alice Kahn Ladas and John D. Perry, the authors named the area the Gräfenberg spot, or G spot. The book became an international bestseller, was translated into 22 languages, and influenced public and academic discourse on sexual health.

Whipple's research extends beyond the G spot. Her methods have included the use of fMRI scans to study brain activity, and her experiments contributed to the isolation of vasoactive intestinal peptide and the discovery that orgasms can occur via the vagus nerve, allowing individuals with spinal cord injuries to achieve orgasm through psychological stimulation. She has co-authored several other works, including "The Science of Orgasm" and "The Orgasm Answer Guide," both published by Johns Hopkins University Press, as well as "Safe Encounters: How Women Can Say Yes to Pleasure and No to Unsafe Sex." Whipple has delivered more than 800 talks and keynote speeches and published over 200 research articles and book chapters.

Whipple was named one of the 50 most influential scientists in the world by New Scientist magazine and was the only scientist in the field of sexual health and sexuality research selected for this recognition. She has received more than 155 awards, including the Hugo Beigel Research Award for research excellence, the Distinguished Scientific Achievement Award, the Public Service Award, the Kinsey Award, and the Bullough Award from the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality. She also received the Gold Medal from the World Association for Sexual Health for lifetime contributions and achievements, and the Masters and Johnson Award from the Society of Sex Therapy and Research for achievements in sexual health. In recognition of her impact, a scientific research center in Puebla, Mexico, was named in her honor: El Centro de Investigacion en Sexologia: Dr. Beverly Whipple.

Whipple has appeared on more than 300 radio and television programs and has been featured in numerous magazines, including Cosmopolitan, which named her one of the 10 Sexual Revolutionaries You Should Know. She has served as president of AASECT, vice president of the World Association for Sexology, president of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality, and secretary general of the World Association for Sexual Health. She received the Dean's Lifetime Achievement Award from the Rutgers School of Nursing Alumni Association for her contributions as both faculty and alumna. A professor emerita at Rutgers University, Whipple continues to be a recognized voice in the field of human sexuality, contributing scientific research and education to the study of sexual health.