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  3. Education / Pedagogy

"chercheur à gages"

English translation: "mercenaries of the mind" / "research mercenaries"

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
French term or phrase:"chercheurs à gages"
English translation:"mercenaries of the mind" / "research mercenaries"
Entered by: Jocelyne S

13:19 Mar 23, 2009
French to English translations [PRO]
Art/Literary - Education / Pedagogy
French term or phrase: "chercheur à gages"
I'm looking for a clever way to render this play on words in English and would appreciate any suggestions.

The context is a critical analysis of academic involvement in NGOs and development work.

Enfin, les contractors académiques, entrepreneurs individuels répondant aux appels d'offres locales et internationales, parfois décriés comme ***''chercheurs à gages''*** ; ils travaillent sur contrat de projet ou bien contrat à durée déterminée, et leurs activités sont très diverses.

Thank you in advance for your ideas.
Best,
Jocelyne
Jocelyne S
France
Local time: 06:08
"mercenaries of the mind"
Explanation:
Just a thought, along the same lines......
Selected response from:

Andrew Mason
France
Local time: 06:08
Grading comment
Thank you very much to all. This was tough to grade, but I've gone with Andrew's "mercenaries of the mind" as it was the idea behind Linda's suggestion, which I actually ended up using. I'm sorry that I can't split points.

Best,
Jocelyne
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
4 +2research mercenaries
Linda Sansome (X)
4 +1contract researchers
Valerie SYKES
3 +1"mercenaries of the mind"
Andrew Mason
3one hit wonders
Emma Paulay
3money-motivated researchers
MatthewLaSon


  

Answers


13 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
one hit wonders


Explanation:
Along similar lines as the Fr.



Emma Paulay
France
Local time: 06:08
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 36
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)

40 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +1
"mercenaries of the mind"


Explanation:
Just a thought, along the same lines......

Andrew Mason
France
Local time: 06:08
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 4
Grading comment
Thank you very much to all. This was tough to grade, but I've gone with Andrew's "mercenaries of the mind" as it was the idea behind Linda's suggestion, which I actually ended up using. I'm sorry that I can't split points.

Best,
Jocelyne

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Emma Paulay: I like this idea!
1 hr
  -> Emma, thank you....
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)

1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +2
"chercheurs à gages"
research mercenaries


Explanation:
'Tueur à gages' is a hit man, hired killer, so working on those lines, I think Andrew's word "mercenaries", added to the word 'research'.

Linda Sansome (X)
France
Local time: 06:08
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 4

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Christopher Newell: I like this idea, it renders the "à gages" idea very well
1 hr
agree  whither has fle
3 hrs
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2 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
contract researchers


Explanation:
I know several academics in GB who do this sort of thing. It's a pretty widespread and respected activity, so this translation does not have any hint of a pejorative interpretation to it.

Valerie SYKES
United Kingdom
Local time: 05:08
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 12

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  whither has fle: now that is interesting...but also confusing considering what "à gages" means in French.
2 hrs
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10 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
money-motivated researchers


Explanation:
Hello,

They'll only do it if they get well-paid. They are simply money-motivated.

I hope this helps.

MatthewLaSon
Local time: 00:08
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 85
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)



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