

Does the field have a cornerstone forum where amateurs mingle with pros? For example, there are several professional astronomers and astronauts on Reddit, and telescope builders on CloudyNights.com. Atmospheric optics has atoptics.org.uk. The chess community has lichess.org. Places like that could be a good place to post about your idea without going into the technical specifics. Hopefully, other members of the community would let you know if you’re going down a promising path, and refer you to a specific pro/academic to further discuss your idea.
100%. The opposite of love isn’t hate, it’s apathy. A parent who reacts that strongly still cares about you on some level, however messed up their way of expressing it may be. A parent who would shrug and continue watching tv, on the other hand, is beyond redemption.