NAE Exemplars in Engineering Ethics Education Added08/30/2016 Updated08/30/2016 These 25 activities and programs were selected by an NAE committee for being exemplary in their approach to infusing ethics into the development of engineering students and were published in an NAE report, Infusing Ethics into the Development of Engineers: Exemplary Education Activities and ... Authoring Institution Center for Engineering Ethics and Society (CEES) National Academy of Engineering The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Year 2016 Read More
All in the Interpretation Added07/28/2011 Updated04/20/2016 A graduate student wrestles with uncomfortable decisions in trying to interpret her research results. She struggles to make un-biased judgments and interact appropriately with the press. Author(s) Simil Raghavan Contributor(s) Simil Raghavan Authoring Institution Online Ethics Center Year 2011 Read More
Microbiologists Respond to Bioterrorism Added10/02/2013 Updated08/05/2016 In the wake of terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon on September 11, 2001, a group of microbiologists worked with the FBI to identify the individual or group who mailed letters filled with anthrax to American government officials and media personalities. Others struggled with the issues of whether and how to publish research results of potential use to terrorists. A part of the Research, Ethics, and Society project, this case can be used to address the social responsibilities of researchers, particularly those concerning scientists and engineers and their involvement in or opposition to military projects. Author(s) Karin Ellison Karen Wellner Contributor(s) Karin Ellison Year 2013 Read More
Serving Plaintiffs and Defendants (adapted from NSPE Cases No. 98-4) Added06/10/2006 Updated01/20/2016 (Conflicting Interests and Conflict of Interest) An expert in her field, an engineer is approached by lawyers for manufacturer XYZ to tesitfy on behalf of XYZ. Later, a plaintiff asks her to testify in an unrelated lawsuit against manufacturer XYZ. Does accepting the second job create a conflict of interest for her? Authoring Institution Online Ethics Center Year 1999 Read More
Cutting Roadside Trees Added06/15/1992 Updated01/19/2016 For each of the past 7 years at least one person has suffered a fatal automobile accident by crashing into trees closely aligned along a 3 mile stretch of Forest Drive. Many other accidents have also occurred, causing serious injuries, wrecked cars, and damaged trees. Some of the trees are quite close to the pavement. Two law suits have been filed against the road commission for not maintaining sufficient road safety along this 3 three mile stretch. Both were dismissed because the drivers were going well in excess of the 45 mph speed limit. Author(s) Michael Pritchard Contributor(s) Michael Pritchard Authoring Institution Center for the Study of Ethics in Society at Western Michigan University Year 1992 Read More
Trench Boxes and the Construction Site Added02/16/2006 Updated01/15/2016 Summary of a case involving safety equipment and professional responsibility on a trench digging site. Authoring Institution Zachry Department of Civil Engineering-TAMU Ethics Year 1995 Read More
ISBN978-0-309-29334-1 Copyright2014 Emerging and Readily Available Technologies and National Security: A Framework for Addressing Ethical, Legal, and Societal Issues Added12/17/2015Updated05/03/2016 Emerging and Readily Available Technologies and National Security is a study on the ethical, legal, and societal issues relating to the research on, development of, and use of rapidly changing technologies with low barriers of entry that have potential military application, such as information ... Authoring Institution The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Year 2014 More Info
"Privacy as Censorship" http://www.cato.org/pubs/pas/pa-295.html Added11/18/2010 Updated07/22/2016 The author of this article (Solveig Singleton) asserts that attempts to regulate privacy in the private sector are really violations of free speech. The tone of the article, and opinion "explores the tangled moral and economic issues surrounding the collection and transfer of information about consumers by businesses using the Internet and other networks". Ultimately, the author wants no regulations on trade of information in the private sector as it applies to information about consumer profiles. Read More
"The Right to Privacy vs. the Common Good" https://www2.gwu.edu/~ccps/etzioni/B338.html Added11/18/2010 Updated06/30/2016 This article, authored by Amitai Etzioni, provides one opinion on 'privacy' as it applies to such issues as: "HIV testing of infants, encryption of communications, community warnings when pedophiles are released, the new technology of biometrics, and medical records" and the history of the legal tradition in the United States that weighs on the side of "privacy" vs. "the common good". Published by USA Today (Society for the Advancement of Education), Sept, 2000. Author(s) Amitai Etzioni Read More
A Child's Question Added09/10/2006 Updated12/21/2016 research ethics, pediatric, research, responsible conduct of research, research integrity, consent, assent, therapeutic benefit, risk, A scenario about a child who is enrolled in a non-therapeutic study asks whether the IV he is about to receive is necessary to make him better. Scenario is meant to stimulate discussion about some ethical issues that may arise in pediatric research. Author(s) Caroline Whitbeck Contributor(s) Caroline Whitbeck Year 2000 Read More
A Claim of Prior Discovery by a Reviewer Added09/09/2006 Updated11/09/2015 A scenario about a researcher who, after reviewing a journal article, recommends rejecting it because it is not novel. Author(s) Caroline Whitbeck Contributor(s) Caroline Whitbeck Year 2000 Read More
A client opts for a less secure system http://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=151231 Added02/01/1993 Updated01/19/2016 A business owner designs a database management system with security protections, but the client opts for less security. Author(s) Ronald E. Anderson Deborah G. Johnson Donald Gotterbarn Judith Perrolle Contributor(s) Deborah G. Johnson Year 1993 Read More
A Cognitive Enhancing Drug Requiring Blood Draws Added08/18/2006 Updated11/09/2015 A scenario about research in which blood is drawn from patients with dementia who cannot understand the reason why. Author(s) Stephen G. Post Contributor(s) Caroline Whitbeck Year 2000 Read More
A Comparison of Ethical Concern Channels in Aerospace Corporations Added08/19/2006Updated04/25/2016A student project using interviews with several aerospace firms, this essay explores how ethical concerns are managed within these organizations. Year 1998 More Info
A DNA Dilemma Added05/23/2006 Updated10/21/2015 This case discusses issues of responsibilities, human subject research ethics and regulations, and responsibility of institutions. Contributor(s) Brian Schrag Authoring Institution Association for Practical and Professional Ethics (APPE) Year 2002 Read More
A Fruitless Thesis Added09/09/2006 Updated01/13/2016 responsible conduct of research, research ethics, responsible research conduct, advisor, mentor, supervisor, job recommendation, recommendation, advisor-advisee relationship, mentor-mentee relationship, supervisor-trainee relationship, A scenario meant to stimulate discussion about the ethical issues that arise in the supervisor-trainee relationship; namely, after reviewing a paper for a journal, a supervisor realizes that his student's thesis is fruitless. Contributor(s) Caroline Whitbeck Read More
A husband suspects an online affair (Sample Scenario from the CSTB) Added07/19/2006 Updated12/16/2015 Two individuals meet online, both are married and have been caught by one of the spouses. The commercial network operator has obligations to enforce policies, including threatening material. This is one of 5 scenarios that discuss computers and Internet privacy, sampled from a publication of the Computer Science and Telecommunications Board (CSTB). Year 1994 Read More
A Lie or Just "a Way of Speaking?" Added08/17/2006 Updated03/07/2016 A scenario meant to stimulate discussion about the phrasing of key pieces of information. Author(s) Caroline Whitbeck Contributor(s) Caroline Whitbeck Year 2000 Read More
A network operator sells personal information (Sample Scenarios from the CSTB) Added07/19/2006 Updated01/19/2016 A commercial network operator collects personal information and sells it to companies for telemarketers without informed consent. This is one of 5 scenarios that discuss computers and Internet privacy, sampled from a publication of the Computer Science and Telecommunications Board (CSTB). Year 1994 Read More
A New Dialysis Machine Added07/15/2010 Updated01/08/2016 An engineer faces trade-offs in the design of new equipment that could greatly affect the final product. Author(s) Sara E. Wilson Year 2010 Read More
A pHish Tale Added04/20/2006 Updated10/18/2016 This case highlights potential dilemmas encountered by postdoctoral fellows in a research setting. Should a scientist release incomplete data to an environmental group so they may work to prevent further environmental damage, or hope for the best during the five-year EPA funded project that will provide conclusive data? It also explores scientists social responsibilities and public perception of scientific data. Contributor(s) Brian Schrag Authoring Institution Association for Practical and Professional Ethics (APPE) Year 2001 Read More
A Plow For Peasant Farmers Added02/16/2006 Updated02/04/2016 Summary of a hypothetical case study and design project that asks engineers to consider the values at issue their work and the social ramifications of technology. Authoring Institution Zachry Department of Civil Engineering-TAMU Ethics Year 1995 Read More
A Problem with the Ethics of Non-Disclosure Agreements Added06/27/2016 Updated06/27/2016 This example student case study from Undergraduate Team Assignment: Ethical Dilemmas In Engineering Student Co-Op Experiences describes a dilemma an engineer faces when working on a problem for a new employer and bound by a non-disclosure agreement from a previous employer. Author(s) Anonymous Contributor(s) Laura Grossenbacher Year 2008 Read More
A Question of Host Factors in Side Effects of Medication Added09/10/2006 Updated10/28/2015 genetics, research, responsible conduct of research, research integrity, genetic research, A scenario meant to stimulate discussion regarding ethical issues in conducting research with genetics: in examining blood for possible side effects from drugs, researchers notice a link with genetic predispositions. Author(s) Elysa Koppelman Caroline Whitbeck Contributor(s) Caroline Whitbeck Year 2000 Read More
A Question of Mentoring Bias Added08/17/2006 Updated09/30/2015 A scenario designed to stimulate discussion about ethical aspects of the supervisor-trainee relationship and bias. Author(s) Albert R. Meyer Caroline Whitbeck Contributor(s) Caroline Whitbeck Year 2000 Read More
A Question of Motives for Funding Research Added09/10/2006 Updated01/29/2016 responsible conduct of research, research ethics, responsible research conduct, research, vulnerable populations, responsible, motives, international research, A scenario meant to stimulate discussion about the ethical issues that arise when the institution funding research has morally suspicious motives. Author(s) Atwood D. Gaines Contributor(s) Caroline Whitbeck Year 2000 Read More
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