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. Animals

    Pregnant bonobos get a little delivery help from their friends

    As in humans, female bonobos become helpers for mothers giving birth, data from captive apes suggest.

  2. Anthropology

    Ancient Chinese farmers sowed literal seeds of change in Southeast Asia

    Two waves of ancient migration from China to Southeast Asia spread farming and languages.

  3. Health & Medicine

    Kids are selective imitators, not extreme copycats

    Preschool-age kids have a reputation as “overimitators” based on lab tests. But in realistic test situations, kids don’t blindly imitate adults.

  4. Humans

    The window for learning a language may stay open surprisingly long

    A crucial period for language learning may extend well into teen years, a new study suggests.

  5. Anthropology

    Butchered rhino bones place hominids in the Philippines 700,000 years ago

    Stone tools and butchery marks point to an ancient hominid presence on islands in the Philippines.

  6. Archaeology

    How a backyard pendulum saw sliced into a Bronze Age mystery

    A saw no one has seen may have built Bronze Age Greek palaces.

  7. Anthropology

    Anthropologists in Peru have unearthed the largest known child sacrifice

    The largest known mass sacrifice of children occurred around 550 years ago in the Chimú empire in Peru.

  8. Psychology

    In China, coffee shop habits show cultural differences tied to farming

    Farming histories have shaped behavior in northern and southern China.

  9. Archaeology

    Clues to an Iron Age massacre lie in what the assailants left behind

    Ancient Scandinavian massacre may reflect power struggles after Rome’s fall.

  10. Anthropology

    A hole in an ancient cow’s skull could have been surgery practice

    Before performing skull operations on people, ancient surgeons may have rehearsed on cows.

  11. Archaeology

    This ancient Maya city may have helped the Snake King dynasty spread

    A rural hub in an ancient Maya state gets its due with some laser help.

  12. Archaeology

    Dogs lived and died with humans 10,000 years ago in the Americas

    Dogs unearthed at sites in Illinois were older than originally thought.