Mr. Disney intended that this be his legacy, the good he did for the world beyond being an entertainer. It was to be supported by tourist income. I thought about that one a long time. We did come up with some notions, though, involving carts and hamster tubes for people.
Marine research involves a big aquarium and that can certainly be made interesting.
Mostly, though, you need a lot of explanation and lecture on what's going on, and what you see won't be very exciting. Paleontologists trying to assemble bones sounds more interesting than it is, for instance. We did turn in some plans that might have worked. Disney seemed to be pleased with some of the ideas I and my colleagues and students came up with. It became a profit center, not an experimental community of tomorrow.