Thanks for the comments, I'm thinking for example of the work of Egyptologists.
When people like John Anthony West raised questions about whether the Great Sphinx was much older than commonly believed, he was criticized by the people he called the 'quackademics'.
When watching interviews of Egyptologists at the time, they seemed to be closed to any possibility of his ideas holding water.
I was introduced to the subject through the work of Graham Hancock, who has gathered information on a number of ancient megalithic sites, many of which he believed to be of much earlier origin that the accepted date.
He has criticized the scientific community for defending a paradigm that they seem to benefit from (or others benefit and they, by proxy). Namely that the development of our race does not seem to have been the simple ascent into the culture of today, which many would like us to believe.
It seems that we have had a more tumultuous journey, and there are definitely areas in which cultures of the past - and some present - have done things better.
West was noted to have a tendency towards 'conspiracy theories'. It is not difficult to understand where he is coming from when our past is kept in shadow.

From whoever is funding their research.
Going against the expected outcome will dry up your resources, so if your grant sponsor sells hammers, you always find nails.

Yeah, they sure do! They defend their beliefs like anyone. We all have our pet beliefs and scientists are no different.. Especially after they have devoted their lives and reputations to their belief. That said, Scientists will usually surrender once it is proven.

I remember a paper I wrote in college about the likelyhood that we still carried "caveman" genes. I was ridiculed by my Anthropology Professor. My Genetics Professor thought it was interesting but unprovable. It is now nearly common knowledge that Europeans and Asians do carry these old genes. I still think they may find older traces in Africans. Of course, this would be "politically incorrect".

Is another religion man.