HSTC 1801 Winter 2019 Review Document (FINAL)

HSTC 1801 Winter 2019 Review Document (FINAL) Date Topics Keywords You should also be able to… Part A: Introduction: Engineering as a liberal profession 7 Jan. Three Gorges Dam We discussed this case to understand some key elements of Canadian professional engineering. Three Gorges Dam -Answer the following questions: 1. Why did the CYJV engineers recommend building a mega- dam on the Yangtze river? 2. Why did Probe International opposed the Three Gorges dam? (Pay attention to the ethical principles at play behind their complaints.) 3. Why did Quebec ’s provincial engineering association refuse to rule on the ethical decisions its members made during their involvements in the Three Gorges Dam project? - Give the four conditions a discipline must meet to be called a profession in the sense of the law. 9 Jan. Stories We looked at a few reasons why the best engineers rely on the humanities, social sciences, and arts in their everyday work. Checklist Inherent safety -Explain why, according to A. Gawande checklists and the stories we tell about them are essential to the success of some highly complex modern technologies. - Give four different strategies an engineer can use to create an inherently safer design. Part B: The Origins of Professional Engineering Engineering Ethics – Overview of theories 14 Jan. Virtue Ethics We explored the notions of “ good character ” and virtue and why they are fundamental to today’s engineering practice. Reading: National Guideline on Good Character Ethical dilemma Virtue Virtue ethics Good character -Understand the difference between a mere ethical decision and an ethical dilemma . -Show in your discussion of ethical dilemmas that you understand how ethical problems are similar to design problems. -Use virtue ethics to solve an ethical dilemma. -Demonstrate a strong understanding of what professional engineering associations mean by “good character” and why they require it, especially when discussing ethical dilemmas. 16 Jan. Enlightenment and the Socially Engaged Engineer We looked at the French origins of civil engineering and the rise of deontological (duty) ethics Reading: National Guideline on the Code of Ethics Sébastien de Vauban Corps des Ingénieurs du Génie Militaire (Army Corps of Engineers) Corps des Ponts and Chaussées (Corps of Bridges and Roads) - Explain why the early modern period, the French government created national corps of military and civil engineers and created schools of engineering. - How did early modern French engineering differ from early modern British engineering (with next lecture) - Be able to use the categorical imperative in a simple case (e.g., lying to a murderer).

Negligence and the Standard of care (also in the last lecture) Reasonable person test Duty ethics Categorical imperative (at least one version) Engineering code of ethics - Be able to give one strength and one weakness of Kant’s duty ethics. - Be able to use Engineers Canada’s code of ethics to offer a solution to complex ethical situations (with other lectures). 21 Jan 23 Jan. 5. British Civil Engineering and the Moral Importance of Consequences Neither virtue ethics, nor duty ethics pay much attention to the actual consequences of moral decisions. Utilitarianism, developed during the Industrial Revolution, argued that consequences are key to any ethical decision . John Smeaton Consequentialism (aka utilitarianism) Society for Civil Engineers Principle of utility Industrial Revolution - Be able to describe Smeaton’s Society of Civil Engineers or T.C. Keefer’s Canadian Society for Civil Engineering and explain how they were similar to “gentlemen’s clubs” and how they differ from today’s professional associations . - Recognize consequentialist arguments (and differentiate them from mere “costs - benefits” analyses. - Use consequentialism to solve an ethical dilemma. Jan. 28- 30 Efficiency and Bridge Collapse (part I) The first organizations did not want to inform engineers’ behaviour but, as the examples of Taylor and Ford show — the general laissez-faire showed that engineers often failed to behave ethically towards clients, employees, and even each other. -F. W. Taylor (19 th c.) - H. Ford -Scientific management (learn the 4 elements) - Use the Ford T example to illustrate scientific management. - Be able to identify the main sources of engineering failures