Egr 402
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EGR 402
03/10/2006 15:04:00
The Engineer as a Responsible Experimenter In General• Who other than engineers can assume responsibility for engineering projects? • Avoiding responsibility diminishes the engineering profession. • Avoiding responsibility encourages “scape goating” The willingness of engineers to assume responsibility for the work, indeed, to be responsible work, is inextricably a part of the answers to these questions. Engineering projects that went awry (in some cases disastrously) • Tacoma Narrows • Titanic • Hindenberg • Comet, Electra, DC 10 • DDT • Love Canal • Asbestos • Aswan Dam • Bhopal • Kansas City Hyatt • Harder Hall, Campus Center http://cems.alfred.edu/courses/ces120/ethics/disasters.html Engineering Disasters • Denver Airport Baggage ystem • Breast Implants • California Mudslides
• • • • • • • • • • • • •
Chernobyl &3 Mile Island Challnger Appolo 13 Thalidomide Hancock Building Pinto, GM Trucks, Samari Waste Management Amtrak Train Off Bridge California Freeways Hubble Space Telescope Pentium Chip Biosphere Edsel Internal Combustion Engine
Engr as an Experiment Experimentation is recognized as an essential role in the design process. Preliminary tests or simulations are conducted. - Materials and processes - Test and qualification of new hardware Similiarities to standard experiments Learning from the past • Engineers learn from previous tasts, mistakes and from other engineers. Lessons learned. Previous experience • Possible reasons that no lessons are learned and lead to failure - Lack of good communication channels - Not asking for help -Pride, Bull headed
-Embarassment -Technical incompetence -Fear of failure, litigation-Organization or corporate structure Lessons learned - Points out problems • Management • Design inadequacies Contrasts with Standard Experiements Experimental Control Informed Consent Knowledge Gained Engineers Responsibility Conscientiousness - People act responsible to the extent that they conscientiously commit themselves to live according to moral values. • Sensitivity to full range of moral values and responsibilities relevant to a given situation and develop skills and expend effort to reach the best balance possible • Conscientiousness- open eyes, ears, and mind are required to recognize a given situation, its implications and who is involved and affected. Contemporary Working Conditions Etc… • Relevant Information Conscientiousness is blind without relevant factual information. Moral concern involves a commitment to obtain and assess all available information pertinent to meet one’s moral obligations. Grasp the extent of ones work and implications Examples:
- weapons developmnt - built in obsolescence - high energy requirements etc. Moral Autonomy (Def) o – People are morally autonomous when their moral conduct and principles of actions are their own. Moral beliefs and attitudes should be held on the basis of critical reflection rather than passive adoption of the particular conventions of ones society, church or profession. This is often what is meant by “authenticity” in one’s commitment to moral values o •
Accountability (def) o Responsible people accept moral responsibility for theory one actions o Being willing to submit ones actions to moral scrutiny and be open and responsive to assessment of others o Areas of concern/driving factors Fragmentation of work in large projects Fragmentation drives lesser accountability Pressure to move forward with the design to meet schedules Law suits and litigations Balanced Outlook on Law • Moral concerns o Minimal compliance o Loop holes in the Law or regulations o Regulations and De-regulations o Interpretation of the Lawand or Government regulations • Industry Complaints o Updates and changes in the Laws o Government Agencies and controls o Balance ones family and your own interests with work and its responsibilities. Industrial Standards (Welcomed by industry)
•
•
Why o o o o
Standards consist of explicit specifications Standards are established by companies for in-house use Standards help the manufacturers, clients and public Examples: ISO (International Standards Organization) http://www.onlineethics.org (barrer of bad news)
03/10/2006 15:04:00
03/10/2006 15:04:00
03/10/2006 15:04:00
The Engineer as a Responsible Experimenter In General• Who other than engineers can assume responsibility for engineering projects? • Avoiding responsibility diminishes the engineering profession. • Avoiding responsibility encourages “scape goating” The willingness of engineers to assume responsibility for the work, indeed, to be responsible work, is inextricably a part of the answers to these questions. Engineering projects that went awry (in some cases disastrously) • Tacoma Narrows • Titanic • Hindenberg • Comet, Electra, DC 10 • DDT • Love Canal • Asbestos • Aswan Dam • Bhopal • Kansas City Hyatt • Harder Hall, Campus Center http://cems.alfred.edu/courses/ces120/ethics/disasters.html Engineering Disasters • Denver Airport Baggage ystem • Breast Implants • California Mudslides
• • • • • • • • • • • • •
Chernobyl &3 Mile Island Challnger Appolo 13 Thalidomide Hancock Building Pinto, GM Trucks, Samari Waste Management Amtrak Train Off Bridge California Freeways Hubble Space Telescope Pentium Chip Biosphere Edsel Internal Combustion Engine
Engr as an Experiment Experimentation is recognized as an essential role in the design process. Preliminary tests or simulations are conducted. - Materials and processes - Test and qualification of new hardware Similiarities to standard experiments Learning from the past • Engineers learn from previous tasts, mistakes and from other engineers. Lessons learned. Previous experience • Possible reasons that no lessons are learned and lead to failure - Lack of good communication channels - Not asking for help -Pride, Bull headed
-Embarassment -Technical incompetence -Fear of failure, litigation-Organization or corporate structure Lessons learned - Points out problems • Management • Design inadequacies Contrasts with Standard Experiements Experimental Control Informed Consent Knowledge Gained Engineers Responsibility Conscientiousness - People act responsible to the extent that they conscientiously commit themselves to live according to moral values. • Sensitivity to full range of moral values and responsibilities relevant to a given situation and develop skills and expend effort to reach the best balance possible • Conscientiousness- open eyes, ears, and mind are required to recognize a given situation, its implications and who is involved and affected. Contemporary Working Conditions Etc… • Relevant Information Conscientiousness is blind without relevant factual information. Moral concern involves a commitment to obtain and assess all available information pertinent to meet one’s moral obligations. Grasp the extent of ones work and implications Examples:
- weapons developmnt - built in obsolescence - high energy requirements etc. Moral Autonomy (Def) o – People are morally autonomous when their moral conduct and principles of actions are their own. Moral beliefs and attitudes should be held on the basis of critical reflection rather than passive adoption of the particular conventions of ones society, church or profession. This is often what is meant by “authenticity” in one’s commitment to moral values o •
Accountability (def) o Responsible people accept moral responsibility for theory one actions o Being willing to submit ones actions to moral scrutiny and be open and responsive to assessment of others o Areas of concern/driving factors Fragmentation of work in large projects Fragmentation drives lesser accountability Pressure to move forward with the design to meet schedules Law suits and litigations Balanced Outlook on Law • Moral concerns o Minimal compliance o Loop holes in the Law or regulations o Regulations and De-regulations o Interpretation of the Lawand or Government regulations • Industry Complaints o Updates and changes in the Laws o Government Agencies and controls o Balance ones family and your own interests with work and its responsibilities. Industrial Standards (Welcomed by industry)
•
•
Why o o o o
Standards consist of explicit specifications Standards are established by companies for in-house use Standards help the manufacturers, clients and public Examples: ISO (International Standards Organization) http://www.onlineethics.org (barrer of bad news)
03/10/2006 15:04:00
03/10/2006 15:04:00
