Engineering Ethics – Discussion, Paper, and Some Questions

1)  Discussion:  The Social and Value Dimensions of Technology

Directions: Please answer BOTH of the questions. Total words need to equal 75 or more words.

Question A

Describe how technology affects society?

Question B

What is meant by the democratic dilemma in science and technology?

2) Paper: The Social and Value Dimensions of Technology

1. Discuss social issues raised by technology regarding privacy and intellectual property.
   • Read the Case Study 38: “Software for a Library” from the text book and answer the questions at the end. Also, discuss the social ethical issues involved in this study and how they can be resolved. (use the template: Evaluation of Case Study)
2. Explain the terms determinism, optimism and pessimism in evaluating technology with regards to social effects. (write at least 2 paragraphs for each)

3) Some Questions that needs answered

1. How does the line-drawing approach help solve ethical problems and limit the risk on projects? (Approximately 2 paragraphs).
2. How does working with a team cause potential ethical problems? How can these issues be limited and avoided? (Approximately 2 paragraphs).
3. What makes engineering a true profession? What are the reasons of engineering not being considered to be the same level as medicine and law? (Approximately 2 paragraphs).
4. Why is analyzing a case study central to ethical problem solving? What benefits does this analysis provide? (Approximately 2 paragraphs).
5. Is the problem solving approach presented in this course similar or different from the engineering problem solving approach? Explain how and why it is different or similar? (Approximately 2 paragraphs).