[ckemere]

If there’s a specific researcher you want to fund, you can absolutely call them up. There will be paperwork around IP, independence, etc.

If you want them to do a specific experiment you’ll likely first need to convince them that it’s a good use of their time.

Harvard itself plays approximately zero role in the decision to do a study or not. (There are ethical oversight committees, etc.)

$1M total cost ($600-800k direct cost depending on terms) will buy you a postdoc’s time and effort for 5 years. Unfortunately most labs aren’t set up for a time/money tradeoff, so 5 postdocs for 1 year would be unlikely absent a really exciting project.

It definitely happens quite a bit!