Prazer!

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My name is Harrison Tanchuck and I just finished my first year at Northeastern. I am a civil engineering major, although I am not quite yet certain what civil engineering entails. I am currently deciding on my concentration, which can be either structural or environmental. My parents own a masonry company that specializes in dimensional stone and I have worked with their associated anchor engineering company and on various construction sites. I believe these experiences have given me a gist of what structural engineering will be like.  The reason I chose this specific dialogue was to give myself a better understanding of renewable energy sources before I take the environmental engineering course in the fall, which I believe will facilitate my decision. I hope to better understand what aspects of Brazilian culture/society/policy have led to the success of alternative energy sources. I am inquisitive as to why the United States hasn’t been as successful as Brazil and seek insight on how we could follow the Brazilian energy model. Also, I am on the 3 co-op track and I intend to take 2 co-ops internationally, one in each concentration and the third on whichever concentration I decide. How I like Brazil may determine if I co-op in South America.

As of yet, I have not discovered anything drastically different from my previous cultural experiences. What is most different to me is the language. I enjoy speaking different languages and am skilled in both Spanish and French. Any chance I get, whether on the street or in a Portuguese newspaper, I try to make connections to the romance languages I speak. I have yet to confirm my speculation, but I believe ‘da’ to be equivalent to the Spanish ‘de la’ or the feminine form of ‘of the’, and ‘do’ to be the same for the masculine form. The Spanish Ñ is ‘nh’ such as in ‘senhor’ or ‘señor’ in Spanish, sir in English. The Spanish ‘ll’ is ‘ch’ in Portuguese, such as ‘chave’, which is ‘llave’ in Spanish or key or ‘chegar’, which is ‘llegar’ in Spanish or ‘to arrive’. I believe nouns ending in a consonant are pluralized by adding an ‘s’ as in French. In Portuguese masculine and feminine articles combined with the preposition a, the article and preposition combine into one word, which happens in Spanish and French. ‘Aos’ in Portuguese I believe is the same as ‘aux’ in French or ‘a los’ in Spanish. I hope to uncover more distinctive attributes of Portuguese grammar and vocabulary as I explore the city and culture.