I find the idea of crowdsourcing scientific research really fascinating. Not sure if it is a scalable model, but I love to see good science funded.
Kickstarting the next version of the Large Hadron Collider might be fun. Every person on the planet gives a dollar... Project Funded.
It could fund good projects, and a side benefit is that scientists would have to connect what they are doing to real value for people. Might be healthy for the industry as a whole.