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. Archaeology

    One of the oldest known cave paintings has been found in Indonesia

    A drawing of a pig on the island of Sulawesi dates to at least 45,500 years ago.

  2. Anthropology

    Ice Age hunters’ leftovers may have fueled dog domestication

    Ancient people tamed wolves by feeding them surplus game, researchers suggest.

  3. Genetics

    Plague may have caused die-offs of ancient Siberians

    DNA suggests that the deadly bacterium that causes the plague reached northeast Asia by 4,400 years ago.

  4. Animals

    Bonobos, much like humans, show commitment to completing a joint task

    Experiments with bonobos suggest that humans aren’t the only ones who can feel a sense of mutual responsibility toward other members of their species.

  5. Science & Society

    What will life be like after the coronavirus pandemic ends?

    Researchers offer a range of perspectives on the possible long-term social consequences of COVID-19.

  6. Archaeology

    Two stones fuel debate over when America’s first settlers arrived

    Stones possibly used to break mastodon bones 130,000 years ago in what is now California get fresh scrutiny.

  7. Archaeology

    The biblical warrior Goliath may not have been so giant after all

    Archaeological finds suggest the width of the walls of Goliath’s home city were used to metaphorically represent the Old Testament figure’s height.

  8. Anthropology

    Ardi and her discoverers shake up hominid evolution in ‘Fossil Men’

    A new book covers the big personalities, field exploits and scientific clashes behind the discovery of the hominid skeleton nicknamed Ardi.

  9. Anthropology

    Female big-game hunters may have been surprisingly common in the ancient Americas

    A Peruvian burial that indicates that women speared large prey as early as 9,000 years ago sheds new light on gender roles of ancient hunter-gatherers.

  10. Psychology

    ‘Deaths of despair’ are rising. It’s time to define despair

    A sense of defeat, not mental ailments, may be derailing the lives of less-educated people in the United States.

  11. Anthropology

    The first Denisovan DNA outside Siberia unveils a long stint on the roof of the world

    Genetic evidence puts Denisovans, humankind’s now-extinct cousins, on the Tibetan Plateau from 100,000 to at least 60,000 years ago.

  12. Anthropology

    Mummified llamas yield new insights into Inca ritual sacrifices

    Bound and decorated llamas, found at an Inca site in southern Peru, may have been buried alive as part of events in annexed territories.