Oh, thank you you for the comment. In fact, the game has plenty of mechanisms to automate science, they are unlocked once you build a bridge and reach the far bank of the river. I'll think how to make some of them available early.
OK, yeah didn't make it that far. Even just Pottery is like 100 scientists (without random boosts) and the next was even more. since they only pop in randomly it's a real drag since you can't idle them nor can you truly actively play since it's mostly waiting making it a harsh active-required grind wall.
If you already have automation later the easiest early game might simply be to provide upgrades to boost values per scientist bringing the manual work back down to a tolerable level. Though that might require re-balancing costs if your base is higher going into automation.