All Stories by Bruce Bower
- Psychology
How to walk in circles without really trying
People walk in circles when landmarks and other directional cues are not available.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Archaeology
Stone Age flutes found in Germany
Excavations in Germany have unearthed what may be the oldest known musical instruments.
- 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.
- 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.
- Health & Medicine
Gene plus stress equals depression debate
A reanalysis of data challenges a prominent report that a particular gene variant interacts with stressful experiences to promote depression, sparking controversy.
- Archaeology
Engraved pigments point to ancient symbolic tradition
Analyses of patterns incised on pieces of ancient pigment indicate that people in southern Africa passed along symbolic practices from 100,000 to 75,000 years ago, scientists say.
