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Kyle Trepanier Professor Leslie Wolcott ENC 1102 2 November 2012 Engineering Ethics Literature Review Draft An amazing understanding of mathematical and technological knowledge is what makes engineers so unique and valuable to society. One aspect that is often overlooked in the engineering field but just as important are the ethics of becoming an engineer, also known as the code of ethics. Many disasters and mishaps that have happened in the past could have been avoided if engineers had a better understanding of their code of ethics. The space shuttle Challenger explodes in 1986 as a result of mechanical engineer Roger Boisjolys recommendations of delaying the launch due to rocket booster design flaws being ignored by the engineering management team (Hoke). The Citigroup Center had disastrous design flaws regarding its structural support beams withstanding strong winds that had gone unnoticed until a year after it was built, and was repaired only after the flaws were brought to lead structural engineer William J. LeMessuriers attention (Hoke). A civil engineer, Marvin Camper, gets suspended from the American Society of Civil Engineers for three years for extorting political contributions from engineers in order to help his young business grow (Hoke). All of the incidents mentioned above are the result of engineering ethics either being ignored or poorly understood.

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According to Dr. Raja V. Ramani Professional codes are framed in terms of personal moral traits, duties and responsibilities to the public, employers, clients, fellow engineers, the profession and to oneself. They prescribe fundamental canons, rules of practice and professional obligations. Our ever expanding world calls for greater and more complex issues for engineers to solve with no guidelines or instruction manual to conquer each unique job, so the code of ethics is always changing and conforming with time, science, and technology (Ramani). The codes are not a single set of written laws, they are an implied set of rules that one is expected to follow if they intend to become an engineer. The planning, designing, engineering, organizing, monitoring, and controlling aspects of an engineers job are all influenced by the code of ethics that they are expected to follow (Ramani). Engineering ethics are vital for engineers to understand in order for them to be successful in their career. In order to help engineers better understand engineering ethics colleges need to offer their engineering students more ethics related classes. According to surveys by Karl D. Stephan, Donnie J. Self, and Elizabeth M. Ellison only 27 percent of engineering students are required to take an ethics course related to engineering. The curriculum for engineering majors is strictly centered on mathematical and technological type classes with little room for students stray off into any other type of courses. Some colleges blend ethics into their academic classes for seniors, but it is very brief where students dont have a complete in depth understanding of what ethics is and how it applies to their career (Graber, Pionke). At the University of Tennessee Engineering students were offered the chance to take a course called Engineering Ethics that strictly taught students the code of ethics (Graber, Pionke). This course was intended to cover all of the nonacademic aspects of becoming an engineer like: the profession of engineering, its role in business and society, and the ethical issues that engineers and their managers face (Graber,

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Pionke). Students who took the course felt that it helped them become better-rounded with their knowledge of the engineering field and have even recommended the class to their peers (Graber and Pionke). To learn from past mistakes and progress its obvious that there needs to be more ethics type of classes created and offered to engineers while they are still in school. Though academics play a major role in engineering, it is only part of becoming successful in the field. The other part you must grasp is how to walk, talk, and act like a professional engineer, which can be accomplished with a good understanding of ethics as it pertains to engineering.

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Works Cited Stephan, Karl D. "A survey of ethics-related instruction in US engineering programs." Journal of Engineering Education 88.3 (1999): 459-464. Self, Donnie J., and Elizabeth M. Ellison. "Teaching engineering ethics: assessment of its influence on moral reasoning skills." JOURNAL OF ENGINEERING EDUCATIONWASHINGTON- 87 (1998): 29-34. Hoke, Tara. "The Importance of Understanding Engineering Ethics." Civil Engineering (08857024) 82.5 (2012): 40-41. Academic Search Premier. Web. 22 Oct. 2012 Ramani, Raja V. "Engineering Ethics an Area In Need Of Greater Understanding." Mining Engineering 63.8 (2011): 55-67. Applied Science & Technology Full Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 15 Oct. 2012. Graber, Glenn C., and Christopher D. Pionke. "A Team-Taught Interdisciplinary Approach to Engineering Ethics." Science & Engineering Ethics 12.2 (2006): 313-320. Academic Search Premier. Web. 7 Oct. 2012.

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