Ethics, Invention and Discovery This web site highlights three cases that illustrate ethical problems in the invention and design process.
Signing Off on Drawings Putnam is an engineer employed by a computer manufacturer. He is responsible for the design of some computer equipment and signs off on the drawings. Although his design is properly prepared, the manufacturing process is faulty, drives up cost, and suffers a mechanical breakdown.
Use of Another Project Study A state agency contacted Firm A and requested preliminary data regarding the possibility of designing a facility of a somewhat unique nature and which required special expertise in the field of solar energy.
Heat Transfer Problem The design of a house wall as given in the following presents a common situation where it is useful to be able to calculate the heat transfer rate through a plane surface.
Teaching Ethics to Scientists and Engineers: Moral Agents and Moral Problems, by Caroline Whitbeck. In the essay, Dr. Whitbeck outlines an "agent-centered" approach to learning ethics. The central aim is to prepare students to act wisely and responsibly when faced with moral problems. The methods characteristic of this approach are suitable for integrating material on professional and research ethics into technical courses, as well as for free-standing ethics courses. Science and Engineering Ethics (1995). Other keywords for this: pedagogy; the use of cases in teaching; active learning; role playing; research integrity.
Relevant Literature on this Topic
Whitbeck, Caroline. 1998. Ethics in Engineering Practice and Research. New York: Cambridge University Press. Other keywords for this book: ethics and prudence; preferences vs. values; negligence; trust, distrust; ambiguity; moral ambiguity; responsibilities, general; professional responsibility; public safety; worker safety; laboratory safety; engineering competence; environmental issues, global; environmental issues, chemical; conflict of interest; ethical codes and guidelines from professional societies; harassment, sexual harassment and aggression; workplace relationships; research misconduct; falsification and fabrication; plagiarism; authorship; human subjects in research; animals in scientific research.
Gorman, M. E. (1998). Transforming nature: Ethics, invention and design. Boston: Kluwer Academic Publishers. Other keywords for this book: trust, distrust; rights; obligations; responsibilities, general; design and the environment; global environmental issues; chemical environmental issues; endangered ecosystems; engineering ethics courses, pedagogy.
Gorman, M. E., Stocker, J., & Mehalik, M. M. (1997). "Using detailed, multimedia cases to teach engineering ethics." Paper presented at the American Society for Engineering Education, Milwaukee, WI. Other keywords for this article: design and the environment; global environmental issues; chemical environmental issues; endangered ecosystems; engineering ethics courses; pedagogy; ethics and the law.
Stocker, J. M., Gorman, M. E., & Werhane, P. (1996). Dow Corning A: Breast implant design (Business case E-0104). Charlottesville, VA: Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, University of Virginia. Other keywords for this article: ethics and the law; engineering ethics courses; pedagogy.
Mehalik, M. M., Gorman, M. E., & Werhane, P. (1996). DesignTex, Inc. A & B (Business Case E-0099, E-0100). Charlottesville, VA: Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, University of Virginia. Other keywords for this article: design and the environment; global environmental issues; engineering ethics courses; pedagogy.
Mehalik, M. M., Gorman, M. E., & Werhane, P. (1997). Rohner Textil AG (A-D) (Business Case E-0107 to E-0110). Charlottesville, VA: Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, University of Virginia. Other keywords for this article: design and the environment; global environmental issues; engineering ethics courses; pedagogy.
Gorman, M. E. (1996). American Solar Network A & B (Business Case E-0097, E-0098). Charlottesville, VA: Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, University of Virginia. Other keywords for this: design and the environment; global environmental issues; engineering ethics courses; pedagogy.
Sonenshein, S., Gorman, M., & Werhane, P. (1997). Solar Electric Light Fund (A), (B), and Teaching Note (Darden Case Bibliography UVA-E-0112). Charlottesville, VA: Colgate-Darden School of Business. Other keywords for this: design and the environment; global environmental issues; engineering ethics courses; pedagogy.
W. Bakker and M. C. Loui, "Can designing and selling low-quality products be ethical?," Science and Engineering Ethics, vol. 3, no. 2, pp. 153-170, April 1997. Condensed version: M. C. Loui, "The engineer's responsibility for quality," Science and Engineering Ethics, vol. 4, no. 3, pp. 347-350, July 1998. Other keywords for this: ethics and economics; responsibility for product quality; consumer/consumption information; corporate ethics.
Don Gotterbarn and Robert Riser, "Ethics activities in Computer Science Courses: Goals and Issues," in Computers and Society, March 1997. Other keywords for this: ethics courses, computer ethics; pedagogy; ethics codes.
Don Gotterbarn and Robert Riser, "Ethics activities in Computer Science Courses," in Computers and Society, December 1996. Other keywords for this: ethics courses, computer ethics; pedagogy; ethics codes.
Don Gotterbarn, Chuck Huff, Dianne Martin, and Keith Miller, "Implementing a Tenth Strand in the CS Curriculum (Second Report from project ImpactCS)." December Communications of the ACM, 39(12): 75-84, December 1996. Other keywords for this: ethics courses, computer ethics; pedagogy; ethics codes.
Don Gotterbarn, Chuck Huff, Dianne Martin, and Keith Miller, "A Framework for Implementing and Teaching the Social and Ethical Impact of Computing." Education and Information Technologies, vol. 1, no. 1, 1996, published by Chapman. Other keywords for this: accountability; ethics courses, computer ethics; pedagogy; ethics codes.
Christelle Didier, "Le cas de Metrotelephone," in Christelle Didier, Annie Gireaux-Geneaux, and Bertrand HÈriard Dubreuil. Ethique industrielle: Textes pour un dÈbat, Editions De Boeck universitÈ, Bruxelles, 1998, pp. 113-124. Other keywords for this: computer ethics; workplace relationships; performance review.