Ethical issues

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CE/ME 4496A Contemporary and Ethical Issues

Fall Semester 2015

The general requirements for each paper are as follows:

 750 word minimum, single spaced, 1” margins, using Times New Roman 12 point font.

 Use the standard memo template posted on Moodle.

 At least 3 references with at least 1 reference being a technical reference. Wikipedia may not be referenced. Complete citations must be used following the

IEEE style manual posted on Moodle.

 Papers are due by 5:00 p.m. October 16th, posted on Moodle.

 The file you upload to Moodle should be named as follows:

Discipline (CE or ME)_4496A_Ethics_FirstName_LastName.pdf

Discipline (CE or ME)_4496A_CI_FirstName_LastName.pdf

Please follow the directions above. Failure to do so will result in no credit being given

for the paper.

Guidelines: A contemporary issue is an issue that affects us today. An ethical issue is one in which the engineer must decide what is the right thing to do. Each discipline has

pertinent issues that could impact the lives of engineers as well as the lives of the general

population. Please discuss the issues including the impacts on society and the economy.

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Discuss the following for the contemporary issue:

 Outline the issue - How did it come about/background info - What is the current status - Who is driving the issue and possibly who is opposed to it

 Discuss Pro and Cons

 Argue/Explain your position and why you support it

Discuss the following for the ethical issue:

 Outline the issue - Background – what was the situation - What happened - Who is blaming who (who is getting sued or has legal/criminal ac-

tion pending)

- What ethics were violated - What is the outcome of the problem (resolution) - How could the problem have been remediated prior to the event - Would you resolve it differently given the info you have (or how

would you resolve it if it hasn’t been)

 Argue/Explain your position and why you support it

Please follow the directions above. Failure to do so will result in no credit being given

for the paper.

Resources for Contemporary Issues:

 Civil and Mechanical Engineering professional magazines.

 ASCE and ASME journals. For example, ASCE Journals are at: http://ascelibrary.org/. The ISU Library has access to some of these journals. You

may also find other article by searching the Google Scholar

(http://scholar.google.com/) or the ASCE Library Search (http://ascelibrary.org/).

If the ISU Library does not have the publications that you need, you should

consider requesting them through the ISU Interlibrary Loan

(http://www.isu.edu/library/). You will receive the electronic (pdf) copies of the

articles within one or two weeks. To be on the safe side, request the Interlibrary

Loan articles as soon as possible.

Resources for Ethical Issue:

 ASCE’s Code of Ethics: http://www.asce.org/ethics/code-of-ethics/

 ASCE’s “A Question of Ethics” from ASCE News: http://www.asce.org/Ethics/A- Question-of-Ethics/

- Ethical issues listed by canon - Ethical issues listed by ASCE News year of publication from 2005 to 2010.

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 ASME Code of Ethics – Posted on Moodle

 ASME Code of Ethics and Criteria for Interpretation of the Fundamental Canons: https://www.asme.org/about-asme/get-involved/advocacy-government-

relations/ethics-in-engineering

Assignment in Contemporary Issues in Civil Engineering:

 Choose a contemporary issue of interest to you such as advanced materials in civil engineering, challenges in water resources, seismic design of structures, and ac-

celerated bridge construction.

Assignment in Contemporary Issues in Mechanical Engineering:

 Choose a contemporary issue of interest to you, such as carbon sequestration, clean water for developing countries, and the role of mechanical engineering.

Assignment for Ethical Issues in Civil Engineering:

 Select a topic from the ASCE’s “A Question of Ethics” web site given above. The corresponding article in the ASCE News may be used as one of your refer-

ences, but you need to find additional references in that area.

Assignment for Ethical Issues in Mechanical Engineering:

 A case involving a software engineer in an aerospace engineering firm. Description and guidelines posted to Moodle.