Jad Abumrad is the host and creator of Radiolab, a public radio program broadcast on 437 stations across the nation. Abumrad grew up in Tennessee, before studying creative writing and music composition at Oberlin College in Ohio. Following graduation, he composed film scores and produced documentaries for a variety of local and national public radio programs. In 2002, Abumrad began tinkering with an idea for a new kind of radio program, an open-ended radio “laboratory” that explores science, philosophy and human experience. Radiolab has since evolved into one of public radio’s most popular programs. Abumrad hosts the program with Robert Krulwich and also serves as its lead producer, composer and managing editor. In 2011, Radiolab was awarded the prestigious George Foster Peabody Award, and Abumrad was honored as a MacArthur Fellow. Alongside his radio work, Abumrad continues to work as a composer and remixer. His music is currently being performed across the country.
Abumrad will present Gut Churn, a multimedia lecture on the creative process. Gut Churn is the result of a three-year investigation into the science, philosophy and art of uncertainty that began by asking: What does it mean to “innovate?” What use do negative feelings have during the creative process? Do those feelings get in the way, or do they propel us forward?