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. Paleontology

    New fossil weighs in on primate origins

    A 55-million-year-old primate skeleton found in Wyoming indicates that the common ancestor of modern monkeys, apes, and people was built primarily for hanging tightly onto tree branches.

  2. Paleontology

    New fossil weighs in on primate origins

    A 55-million-year-old primate skeleton found in Wyoming indicates that the common ancestor of modern monkeys, apes, and people was built primarily for hanging tightly onto tree branches.

  3. Archaeology

    Neandertals’ diet put meat in their bones

    Chemical analyses of Neandertals' bones portray these ancient Europeans as skillful hunters and avid meat eaters, countering a theory that they mainly scavenged scraps of meat from abandoned carcasses.

  4. Brain’s Moving Experience: Motion illusion yields a neural surprise

    A brain-imaging study indicates that the primary motor cortex, the control center for issuing motor commands, also aids in the perception of the body's position and planning for upcoming movements.

  5. Neural-learning ventures

    Sets of neurons may modify their activity in several ways to facilitate a basic type of learning.

  6. Dancing with feeling

    Indian classical dance provides a new way for scientists to explore cross-cultural understanding of emotions.

  7. Anthropology

    Script Delivery: New World writing takes disputed turn

    Researchers announced, to considerable controversy, that inscriptions found on artifacts at an Olmec site in southeastern Mexico represented the earliest known writing system in the Americas.

  8. Cancer patients accentuate the positive

    Group therapy that promotes positive types of personal growth in breast cancer patients may also result in beneficial physiological changes.

  9. Lost That Smoking Feeling: Emotions sputter as cigarette motivator

    The first detailed effort to monitor the reactions of cigarette smokers as they carry out their daily activities finds that they feel neither better nor worse than at times when they don't begin smoking.

  10. Religious commitment linked to longer life

    A statistical analysis of 42 studies revealed that people who report heavy involvement in religious activities tend to have better physical health and live longer than those who don't.

  11. Emotional gain after verbal loss

    Brain-damaged people who have lost much of their ability to understand spoken sentences are better than healthy folks at picking up emotions that others are trying to conceal.

  12. Extended test for bipolar drugs

    A long-term study finds some advantages for patients with manic-depressive illness taking an anticonvulsant drug, although placebos also have positive effects on this ailment.