The Institut des Hautes Etudes Scientifiques (IHES) is an international research institute in mathematics and theoretical physics. It was funded in 1958 by Leon Motchane, a math-enthusiast and a businessman who dreamed of providing the best mathematicians and theoretical physicists with a place where they could carry on curiosity-driven research. Hosting every year more than 200 researchers from all over the world, and counting 7 Fields medallists out of the 10 permanent professors hired so far in mathematics, IHES is today a world leading research center.