Electrical Engineering Case Study
1. Introduction
Engineers have the potential of developing technology that will be used by hundreds, thousands, even millions of people. Since so many people are using this technology, it has to be safe and it has to benefit one population without making another suffer. As the engineers design new technology, they are the ones that have an ethical responsibility to ensure that it will not endanger lives or cause any suffering.
The purpose of the essay is to explore the specific issues that face electrical engineers. The primary focus in this essay will be addressing the question: how can an issue be an ethical concern if it does not directly endanger human life or society? This is particularly important as in contrast to other branches of engineering, the moral issues surrounding electrical engineering do not usually affect a consumer’s health or lead to injury or death. A civil engineering dilemma could involve a building collapsing or roads falling apart leading to direct death or injury, such as the "L 'Ambiance Plaza Collapse"1 in Connecticut, or the "Sampoong Department Store Collapse"2 in Seoul.
However, as discussed in Fleddermann (2000)3, the problems faced by electrical engineers are no less important, and that the engineers in this discipline should be aware of the particular ethical dilemmas of this field.
The field of electrical engineering covers a wide range of technology from power generation and transmission lines to integrated circuits used in computers. This essay will outline, using real-life examples, three major concerns in electrical engineering and explain how they impact the world on an international scale. The current solutions to the ethical dilemmas will be evaluated using ethical analysis, and alternative solutions will be provided.
The following scenarios are an excellent illustration of the ethical issues that electrical engineers have to face and opens up a unique discussion about their responsibilities in both a national and
Engineers have the potential of developing technology that will be used by hundreds, thousands, even millions of people. Since so many people are using this technology, it has to be safe and it has to benefit one population without making another suffer. As the engineers design new technology, they are the ones that have an ethical responsibility to ensure that it will not endanger lives or cause any suffering.
The purpose of the essay is to explore the specific issues that face electrical engineers. The primary focus in this essay will be addressing the question: how can an issue be an ethical concern if it does not directly endanger human life or society? This is particularly important as in contrast to other branches of engineering, the moral issues surrounding electrical engineering do not usually affect a consumer’s health or lead to injury or death. A civil engineering dilemma could involve a building collapsing or roads falling apart leading to direct death or injury, such as the "L 'Ambiance Plaza Collapse"1 in Connecticut, or the "Sampoong Department Store Collapse"2 in Seoul.
However, as discussed in Fleddermann (2000)3, the problems faced by electrical engineers are no less important, and that the engineers in this discipline should be aware of the particular ethical dilemmas of this field.
The field of electrical engineering covers a wide range of technology from power generation and transmission lines to integrated circuits used in computers. This essay will outline, using real-life examples, three major concerns in electrical engineering and explain how they impact the world on an international scale. The current solutions to the ethical dilemmas will be evaluated using ethical analysis, and alternative solutions will be provided.
The following scenarios are an excellent illustration of the ethical issues that electrical engineers have to face and opens up a unique discussion about their responsibilities in both a national and
References: 1. http://www.engineering.com/Library/ArticlesPage/tabid/85/ArticleID/168/LAmbiance-Plazza.aspx 2. http://www.hazardcards.com/card.php?id=8 3. http://www.ele.uri.edu/courses/ele400/f12/cases.pdf 4. B. Crothers, “Pentium woes continue,” Infoworld, vol. 16, no. 48, pp. a. 1–18, Nov. 18, 1994. 5. http://www.engineersaustralia.org.au//sites/default/files/shado/About%20Us/Overview/Governance/CodeOfEthics2000.pdf 6. http://www.mcw.edu/radiationoncology/ourdepartment/radiationbiology/Power-Lines-and-Cancer-FAQs.htm#1 7. http://www.dg.history.vt.edu/ch2/impact.html 8. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YeDw6yHQVbI