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

    Homo erectus’ last known appearance dates to roughly 117,000 years ago

    New evidence helps resolve a debate over how long ago Home erectus survived in what’s now Indonesia, a study finds.

  2. Humans

    Mysterious Denisovans emerged from the shadows in 2019

    Denisovan fossil and DNA finds this year highlighted the enigmatic hominid’s complexity and our own hybrid roots.

  3. Archaeology

    A nearly 44,000-year-old hunting scene is the oldest known storytelling art

    Cave art in Indonesia dating to at least 43,900 years ago is the earliest known storytelling art, and shows otherworldly human-animal hunters.

  4. Archaeology

    Archaeologists have finally found ancient Egyptian wax head cones

    Newly discovered wax caps are the first physical examples of apparel shown in many ancient Egyptian art works.

  5. Humans

    An ancient outbreak of bubonic plague may have been exaggerated

    Archaeological evidence suggests that an epidemic that occurred several centuries before the Black Death didn’t radically change European history.

  6. Archaeology

    Infrared images reveal hidden tattoos on Egyptian mummies

    Infrared images show a range of markings on seven female mummies, raising questions about ancient Egyptian tattoo traditions.

  7. Humans

    Archaeologists tie ancient bones to a revolt chronicled on the Rosetta Stone

    The skeleton of an ancient soldier found in the Nile Delta provides a rare glimpse into an uprising around 2,200 years ago.

  8. Archaeology

    A carved rock found in Jordan may be the oldest known chess piece

    The 1,300-year-old game piece, which resembles a rook, or castle, was found at an Early Islamic trading outpost.

  9. Animals

    A tooth fossil shows Gigantopithecus’ close ties to modern orangutans

    Proteins from the past help clarify how an ancient Asian ape that was larger than a full-grown, modern male gorilla evolved.

  10. Humans

    Fossils suggest tree-dwelling apes walked upright long before hominids did

    A partial skeleton from an 11.6-million-year-old European ape still doesn’t answer how hominids adopted a two-legged gait.

  11. Science & Society

    Can neighborhood outreach reduce inner-city gun violence in the U.S.?

    While mass shootings grab U.S. headlines, the steady scourge of inner-city gun violence gets less attention — and fewer solutions.

  12. Archaeology

    A toe bone hints that Neandertals used eagle talons as jewelry

    An ancient eagle toe bone elevates the case for the use of symbolic bird-of-prey pendants among Neandertals, researchers say.