Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro

This course offers an introduction to geotechnical engineering. Topics include: origin and formation of soils; geological-geotechnical profiles-- direct and indirect surveys; undisturbed and dented sampling; soil characterization-- granulometric distribution, physical indexes, limits of consistency, geotechnical classification systems; soil structures, mineralogy of clays, and compacted soils; tensions in soil masses-- geostatic stresses and induced stresses; effective stress and pressure; capillarity; percolation in soils-- concept of loads, permanent flow, permeability coefficient.

This course provides an introduction to the characteristics and operations of the advertising market. Topics include: concepts and definitions of publicity and advertising; political, social, and economic context of advertising; elements of the advertising system-- agencies, advertisers, brokers, carriers and suppliers; agency structure and advertising departments; history of advertising in Brazil.

This course is designed to immerse in some of the central debater of contemporary western philosophy. To achieve this goal, we will engage in a critical exploration of such topics as knowledge and certainty, science and method, freedom and determinism, and authority and the state. A student will be expected to be able to articulate the various philosophical problems considered in the course and to assess the various arguments pro and con surrounding the proposed solutions. The course is fundamentally based on reading, discussing and writing about distinct philosophical questions.

This course examines the various social problems that can lead to the development of sustainable business organizations that seek to positively impact society and the environment. Topics covered include: concepts and historical progress of the social sector in Brazil; legal framework for Brazilian organizations; fundraising mechanisms; social business planning.

This course analyzes the concept of literary modernity. It discusses tradition and rupture in Brazilian literary production. This class explores the formation of the historical vanguards and the concepts of movement, regionalisms, and universalisms.

The course teaches students about live model drawing with emphasis on observation and interpretation of the human figure and its relation in space. Topics covered include visual perception, personal expression, and the contours and movements of the human form, with techniques in the construction of color, light, and shadow. Students work with pencil, and choose a second technique such as watercolor, pen, pastel, or charcoal.

This course focuses on aesthetic dimensions of social communication. Topics include: communication, perception, and aesthetics; art as a system of meaning; media and the reproduction of works of art; media and aesthetic creation and standardization; artistic production and mass media in Brazil.

This course examines the development of Brazilian foreign policy since the beginning of the 20th century. Topics include: globalism; military regimes; geopolitics and the national security doctrine; democratization; neoliberal adjustments; Brazil's place in the international arena in the post-Cold War era.

This course offers a study of United Nations Peacekeeping Operations. Topics include: historical background; normative and institutional development of this collective action mechanism; contemporary challenges of the Operations such as protection of civilians, civil-military coordination, use of force, regionalization, gender and police; current global order and projections for UN Peacekeeping Operations.