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. Anthropology

    Laetoli footprints show signs of unusual gait

    Contrary to prior study, 3.6-million-year-old hominids in Tanzania did not walk like humans.

  2. Anthropology

    Earliest case of a battered child found in Greece

    A baby living in Athens around 2,200 years ago was probably beaten to death.

  3. Anthropology

    Ancient boy died surprisingly young

    Imaging analysis reduces age of Australopithecus sediba youngster from 9 to 7.5 years old.

  4. Anthropology

    Turkana Boy sparks row over Homo erectus height

    Estimating the adult height and weight of an ancient youth from his skeleton has proven tricky.

  5. Anthropology

    Bronze Age herders spread farming around Asia

    Ancient seeds indicate that Central Asian animal raisers had an unappreciated impact on early agriculture.

  6. Humans

    Childhood program improves health 30 years later

    A preschool intervention for kids from poor families benefits their health as adults, especially among men.

  7. Life

    Human noses know more than 1 trillion odors

    Sense of smell displays a vast reach in study of people’s ability to distinguish between scents.

  8. Archaeology

    Roman gladiator school digitally rebuilt

    Imaging techniques unveil a 1,900-year-old Roman gladiators’ training center that’s buried beneath a site in Austria.

  9. Animals

    Chimps catch people’s yawns in sign of flexible empathy

    Chimpanzees may show humanlike empathy, as evidenced by their contagious yawning.

  10. Psychology

    The addiction paradox

    Addiction is often seen as a chronic disease that requires maintenance treatment even after years of sobriety. But even without help, most addicts eventually can quit for good.

  11. Science & Society

    Domestic violence arrests may be counterproductive

    Mandatory arrest laws may increase mortality rates, especially among employed black women.

  12. Genetics

    Neanderthal Man

    The hottest thing in human evolution studies right now is DNA extracted from hominid fossils. Svante Pääbo, the dean of ancient-gene research, explains in Neandertal Man how it all began when he bought a piece of calf liver at a supermarket in 1981.