They did, like protein folding. Part of it is that if its going to be a currency, its not particularly appealing that some group gets arbitrary benefits from t

They did, like protein folding. Part of it is that if its going to be a currency, its not particularly appealing that some group gets arbitrary benefits from the act of mining, for free. The government has the power to force such a currency on us, but otherwise, unless the economically valuable activity is globally valuable, its a difficult proposition to justify.