> In contrast, you can get a student or postdoc for far less Yeah I totally agree on this part. The academic system relies not on monetary compensation for it

> In contrast, you can get a student or postdoc for far less Yeah I totally agree on this part. The academic system relies not on monetary compensation for its labor, rather it provides them reputation by getting their names on a paper. I worked essentially for free for a lab in my spare time for 4 years. They get to the result they want, even if its built on a shaky foundation, and for basically free (it doesn't cost anything to put a name on a paper). At the end of the 4 years the dream of getting my name on a paper didn't even pan out (lab was ramping down and was essentially a teaching research lab by the time I showed up).