That would be far harder and riskier. You don't just get a blank cheque for money in academic science that you could pocket. You have a pool of virtual money th

That would be far harder and riskier. You don't just get a blank cheque for money in academic science that you could pocket. You have a pool of virtual money that you can request purchases and pay people's salaries from. Both go through university accountants who check things for anything fishy.