Spreading Knowledge and Wonder

Fans of TV science programs were likely captivated by the documentary about human evolution that premiered on PBS stations in 2014. ‘‘Your Inner Fish’’ provided a guided tour of the human body and where its many features came from— color vision and brain anatomy from primates, teeth and skin and hair from ancient reptiles, necks and fingers and eyes from primordial fish. The three-part series combined time-tested nature documentary footage with animated versions of long-extinct creatures worthy of any modern science fiction movie. That approach won the company that produced it, Tangled Bank Studios, an Emmy for graphic design and art direction. Any filmmaker would be proud to win such an honor, but Tangled Bank isn’t your average studio. It’s the production company of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), an organization in Chevy