Ironically, in the DoD contracting world there are roles like this; SETA (systems engineering and technical assurance) and SME (subject matter expert) contracti

Ironically, in the DoD contracting world there are roles like this; SETA (systems engineering and technical assurance) and SME (subject matter expert) contracting roles from disinterested third parties are usually a required function in DoD acquisition programs. These folks are basically paid skeptics of the work being done by the prime contractors, which is a good failsafe to build in for >$100MM tax-funded programs and for weapons and vehicles that can kill people. In this particular case, though, the hokum is coming internally from a government lab, and the work is early research, so it doesn't have to meet the same validation standards.