On Dec. 17, 1953, Howard Hughes signed documents that created the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, formed with the express goal of basic biomedical research, including trying to understand, in Hughes’ words, the “genesis of life itself”, due to his lifelong interest in science and technology. Hughes’ first will, signed in 1925, stipulated a portion of his estate be used to create a medical institute bearing his name. Hughes was HHMI’s sole trustee and transferred all of his Hughes Aircraft stock to the institute. Launched in Miami, Florida, HHMI in Chevy Chase, Maryland,