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. Noises On, Language Off: Speech impairment linked to unsound perception

    A language disorder that affects a substantial number of elementary school children arises from a difficulty in picking out basic elements of speech, such as consonants, from streams of sound.

  2. Archaeology

    French site sparks Neandertal debate

    Radiocarbon analyses of material from a French cave indicate that Neandertal and modern human occupations of the site overlapped around 36,000 years ago, possibly explaining why Neandertals began to employ some new toolmaking techniques around that time.

  3. Thinking the Hurt Away: Expectations hitch ride on pain’s brain pathway

    Positive thinking exerts a calming effect on pain-related brain areas, yielding a substantial reduction in the actual perception of pain, a brain-scan investigation suggests.

  4. Anthropology

    Chimps to People: Apes show contrasts in genetic makeup

    The first comparison of the chimpanzee genome to that of people has revealed new DNA disparities between ourselves and the primate species most closely related to us.

  5. Chimps ape others to learn tool use

    Chimpanzees appear to develop traditions of tool use by copying one another's behavior and conforming to a successful approach.

  6. Placebo reins in pain in brain

    Pain relief provided by inert medications may reflect increased transmission of a brain chemical involved in regulating stress and suppressing pain.

  7. Anthropology

    A Seasoned Ancient State: Chinese site adds salt to civilization’s rise

    Analyses of remains from an ancient Chinese site situated along a river indicate that salt making occurred there as long as 4,000 years ago.

  8. Anthropology

    Reservoirs of Evolution: Rainy periods linked to human origins in Africa

    Three phases of heavy rainfall in eastern Africa between 2.7 million and 900,000 years ago created deep lakes and might have played a critical role in the evolution of human ancestors.

  9. Anthropology

    The Human Wave

    Anatomically modern people evolved in small groups of ancient Homo sapiens that never traveled too far but continually interbred with nearby groups, including other Homo species, creating a genetic wave that moved from Africa across Asia, a new model suggests.

  10. Fickle Finger’s Funny Feel: Digit illusion modifies touch perception

    The brain rapidly adjusts its internal map of the body's skin surface, according to a new study of people who underwent laboratory procedures that induced illusions of finger growth or shrinkage.

  11. Bipolar kids harbor unique brain trait

    Children and teenagers with bipolar disorder, a severe mental ailment that involves sharp mood swings, display unusually low tissue volume in a brain area involved in learning to regulate emotions.

  12. Archaeology

    Judeo-Christian ties buried in Rome

    New radiocarbon dates from one of ancient Rome's underground cemeteries, or catacombs, indicates that these structures were built in the Jewish community more than a century before early Christians started to do the same.