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. Humans

    Girls have head start on snake and spider fears

    At 11 months of age, girls quickly learn to associate fearful faces with images of snakes and spiders, a new study suggests.

  2. Archaeology

    Exhuming a violent event

    Four graves containing 13 skeletons have given scientists a glimpse of a lethal raid that occurred in central Europe 4,600 years ago.

  3. Psychology

    How to walk in circles without really trying

    People walk in circles when landmarks and other directional cues are not available.

  4. Archaeology

    Fire engineers of the Stone Age

    New evidence indicates that people used fires to heat stones in preparation for making cutting instruments at least 72,000 years ago in southern Africa.

  5. Anthropology

    Humanity’s upright gait may have roots in trees

    A comparison of wrist bones from African apes and monkeys indicates that human ancestors began walking by exploiting the evolutionary legacy of ancient, tree-climbing apes.

  6. Animals

    Tool use to crow about

    A pair of new studies indicates that crows can employ tools in advanced ways, including using stones to displace water in a container and manipulating three sticks in sequence to reach food.

  7. Psychology

    Neighborhood unity offers behavioral protection for poor kids

    A five-year study of British families finds that young children living in low-income communities show fewer signs of serious behavior problems if they have close-knit, concerned neighbors.

  8. Anthropology

    Maize may have fueled ancient Andean civilization

    A chemical analysis of skeletons from Peru’s Andes Mountains suggests that cultivation of key crop made building a prehistoric civilization possible.

  9. Psychology

    2-year-olds possess grammatical insights

    Toddlers discern basic rules for using nouns and verbs at least one year before speaking in complete sentences, French brain researchers report.

  10. Archaeology

    Stone Age flutes found in Germany

    Excavations in Germany have unearthed what may be the oldest known musical instruments.

  11. Archaeology

    Ancient granaries preceded the Agricultural Revolution

    Granaries excavated in Jordan indicate that people stored large quantities of wild cereals by about 11,300 years ago, a practice that led to the cultivation of domesticated plants, a new study suggests.

  12. Life

    Mosquito fish count comrades to stay alive

    New experiments indicate that mosquito fish can count small numbers of companions swimming in different groups, an ability that apparently evolved to assist these fish in avoiding predators.