Bruce Bower

Bruce Bower

Behavioral Sciences Writer

Bruce Bower has written about the behavioral sciences since 1984. He often writes about psychology, anthropology, archaeology and mental health issues. Bruce has a master's degree in psychology from Pepperdine University and a master's degree in journalism from the University of Missouri. Following an internship at Science News in 1981, he worked as a reporter at Psychiatric News, a publication of the American Psychiatric Association, until joining Science News as a staff writer. In 1996, the American Psychological Association appointed Bruce a Science Writer Fellow, with a grant to visit psychological scientists of his own choosing. Early stints as an aide in a day school for children and teenagers with severe psychological problems and as a counselor in a drug diversion center provided Bruce with a surprisingly good background for a career in science journalism.

All Stories by Bruce Bower

  1. Brains disconnect as people sleep

    Rather than turning off completely during sleep, the brain shuts down communication among structures that make up neural networks.

  2. Concentrated Guidance: Attention training gives kids a cognitive push

    A brief course on how to pay attention boosts children's scores on either intelligence or attention tests, depending on their age.

  3. Meds Alert: Old schizophrenia drug stands up to new ones

    A new, much-touted generation of antipsychotic drugs generally yields no more improvement in people with schizophrenia than an older, cheaper antipsychotic medication does.

  4. Anthropology

    Genes tied to recent brain evolution

    Two genes already known to influence brain size have undergone relatively recent, survival-enhancing modifications in people and appear to be still evolving.

  5. Childhood’s End

    In northern Thailand, parents send one or more of their daughters off to become prostitutes so that the girls will make enough money to improve the local status of their families, a finding with implications for programs aimed at stopping child prostitution.

  6. Noises On, Language Off: Speech impairment linked to unsound perception

    A language disorder that affects a substantial number of elementary school children arises from a difficulty in picking out basic elements of speech, such as consonants, from streams of sound.

  7. Archaeology

    French site sparks Neandertal debate

    Radiocarbon analyses of material from a French cave indicate that Neandertal and modern human occupations of the site overlapped around 36,000 years ago, possibly explaining why Neandertals began to employ some new toolmaking techniques around that time.

  8. Thinking the Hurt Away: Expectations hitch ride on pain’s brain pathway

    Positive thinking exerts a calming effect on pain-related brain areas, yielding a substantial reduction in the actual perception of pain, a brain-scan investigation suggests.

  9. Anthropology

    Chimps to People: Apes show contrasts in genetic makeup

    The first comparison of the chimpanzee genome to that of people has revealed new DNA disparities between ourselves and the primate species most closely related to us.

  10. Chimps ape others to learn tool use

    Chimpanzees appear to develop traditions of tool use by copying one another's behavior and conforming to a successful approach.

  11. Placebo reins in pain in brain

    Pain relief provided by inert medications may reflect increased transmission of a brain chemical involved in regulating stress and suppressing pain.

  12. Anthropology

    A Seasoned Ancient State: Chinese site adds salt to civilization’s rise

    Analyses of remains from an ancient Chinese site situated along a river indicate that salt making occurred there as long as 4,000 years ago.