Yea, I love research but there are enough problems within the establishment that at this point I see the industry as largely captured which I find deeply disappointing.
The funding largely goes to whatever the federal level already approves of, or wants approved to cement their power. As such the public trust in these institutions is rapidly eroding. Becker talks about the capture of research funding a lot back in the 80s, with military and technology industries preventing any research into EMF dangers etc. This has gotten even worse, especially now with how the COVID vaccines were handled.
We need to radically reimagine how to verify proof of work on research, I think you're on to something with the web of trust. 💯