TERRY GROSS, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. I'm Terry Gross. My guest, Jad Abumrad, is the producer of Radiolab, a nationally broadcast public radio show and podcast that originates from WNYC in New York. He's considered to be a radio genius, like Ira Glass. As evidence, Jad is the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship, the so-called Genius Award. For about 17 years, he cohosted Radiolab with Robert Krulwich. They started off doing deep dives into science-related stories with highly produced narratives in which the voices were almost scored like music. Composing film scores was Jad's initial aspiration.