Bruce Nelson graduated from Harvey Mudd College in 1974, and went on to earn a master's in computer science from Stanford University in 1976, and a Ph.D. in computer science from Carnegie Mellon University in 1982.

While pursuing his Ph.D., he worked at Xerox PARC where he developed the concept of remote procedure call (RPC).

[2] He died on September 19, 1999, due to complications from an aortic dissection, while on a business trip to Tel Aviv, Israel.

[2] In 2007 the Birrell and Nelson paper won an operating system hall of fame award from the ACM.

[2] His outgoing and eccentric personality included a fascination with crows, leading a friend to name his company "Caw Networks".