Glory
There's potential for glory here—again, if you find something really revolutionary as the result of your research that somehow benefits mankind (the living ones), you may be celebrated for your accomplishments. Mary Leakey, for example, discovered in 1978 a 3.2 million-year-old skeleton that was affectionately named "Lucy." This discovery helped us learn much about our own evolution, as well as quite a bit about why so many old people are named "Lucy."
But even if your triumphs are more small-scale, you'll certainly feel better about your achievements than will some schlub who sits behind a desk in an insurance office all day long. (Please don't show this to anyone who works behind a desk in an insurance office. We'll feel bad.)