Status-quo bias is a phenomenon that is well documented in the psychology literature: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Status_quo_bias Bias for the established ways of thinking seems especially common (to me) in the physical sciences. I do not think that should be a surprise since the fundamental view of natural processes does not advance quickly. Perhaps this is why Einstein remarked that if you really believed in your ideas then you should quit being an academic and go get a job like a lighthouse keeper. That maybe works in mathematical physics, where all you need is a pen and paper, but in the other sciences it does not seem like a great plan. What I have observed many do when they find their ideas fall foul of the times is they go get a line-of-business job that does not require a lot of mental energy. That is a plan I have seen work for many. Finance is particularly good for that. It is a field where knowing how to think in contrarian fashion and also knowing how to run with the herd are both valuable. I see a lot of mathematical physics folks do that as a way to reconcile the glacial pace of scientific development with the urge to think and do something new and innovative. There are quite a few famous mathematicians who paid the bills with finance work. For instance, Gauss wrote insurance contracts and used his distribution to help price the risk. Of course, in modern times Jim Simons runs a hedge fund.