Ethics

What would an engineer have to know about ethics? Engineers already know too much which give them the power to create new technology and foreseeing the technological advancements, yet in order to preserve that knowledge ethics come handy. I will talk about engineering as a reflection process. It is an art that grows bit by bit experience by experience. Engineers should not be afraid of making mistakes. They should see it as a lesson given to the future generations. Engineers deal with an ethical issue when they try to hide their mistakes. Whether it is a new product they work on, or a simple lab work. Some people just can’t handle failure. As we discussed in class, some students make up lab values to make their projects seem perfect. It is not just students; companies where lots of engineers are involved hide some errors and produce defective products which can go as far as endangering the consumer’s life.

It is not always the failure we hide; it can sometimes be a successful exploration with contradictory outcomes to the common view. Engineers should not abstain from sharing their conclusions even if it means that some companies will have great loss. Engineering is all about innovation, reaching out for the new that didn’t exist before. Some people who have great benefits from the current technology can oppose engineers who can come up with a less expensive technology that would bring the company’s profit down yet it is not the engineer’s fault. Engineers’ job is to share their findings with other people and make them benefit from the innovation they bring. Engineers should not hide anything, positive or negative, from the society they serve to.