Electrical Engineering and Ethics

by: Sadab Bahar  

Picture Credit: Douglas Detrick

            When people are asked about ethics, they tend to reply what they think or feel is correct. Some people even relate ethics with religion. However, people who follow ethics according to feelings and religion may not do the right thing all the time. Ethics are standards of right and wrong that revolve around benefitting society and fairness (Velasquez). In this blog post I will be discussing the importance of ethics in engineering, specifically electrical engineering. 

            Ethics are a very important part of engineering. Engineers must take ethics seriously or else they can violate public safety. According to the Code of Ethics by the National Society of Professional Engineer, engineers must exhibit the highest standards of honesty, integrity, dedicate to the protection of society (NSPE). There have been countless examples in the past of poor ethics including the Challenger explosion and the Tacoma Bridge collapsing. When building the Tacoma Bridge, engineers used slender spans and noticed the oscillation of the spans but did not take the correct measures to fix it. This led to the collapse of the bridge. Engineers must always think about the safety of the society when developing new technology (Nguyen). 

            I know my major is mechanical engineering, but I have always been interested in electrical engineering as well. It is the engineering things that people do not see such as the wiring of the lights in your house or why your television consists of a few colors but you are able to see every color from it. The consequences that can result from poor ethics in electrical engineering are very dangerous. It can lead to spontaneous fires or electrical shocks that can severely harm the user. As technology becomes more and more incorporated into society, electrical engineers must take the Code of Ethics much more seriously. 

            The Code of Ethics that applies to all engineering is a very important part of the profession. It is taught to all engineers and is emphasized in many of the classes that engineering students take throughout university. This code is very important and it is similar to my own which is simply benefitting society, fairness, and protecting the public health. I, personally, believe ethics is a very important issue, and if someone does not have proper ethics they will have a low moral code. Most people today know that engineers have a strict code of ethics. They expect when buying products, such as smart phones, that it will function properly without bursting into flames or harming the user. 

Sources: 

Velasquez, Manuel, Claire Andre, Thomas Shanks, and Michael Meyer. “What Is Ethics?” Santa Clara University. Santa Clara University, 18 Aug. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2016.

Nguyen, Denise. “Engineering Ethics.” Electrical and Computer Engineering Design Handbook. Electrical and Computer Engineering Design Handbook, n.d. Web 24 Sept. 2016.

“Code of Ethics.” National Society of Professional Engineers. National Society of Professional Engineers, n.d. Web. 25 Sept. 2016. 

The Field of Engineering

By: Kevin Chung

In this post, I want to talk about my field of engineering, mechanical engineering. I want to talk about this because people say that this industry is so broad within engineering. So, I’m going to divide this post into two sections, one part about what I know about mechanical engineering, and the other part that’s the truth of mechanical engineering.

What I know about mechanical engineers is that these people deal in anything that moves. Or, in another way to look at it, moving one thing at point A to point B. To create small individual parts for something like a hose, or large systems like a car. To do this, they must have a great understanding in thermodynamics, physics, and mechanical systems. Some skills they must have in order to succeed in their field is a great understanding of applied science and mathematical aspects. But these skills will only get you so far. All mechanical engineers work in teams. It makes sense when you think about multiple people working together to bounce ideas off each other and pool in their knowledge to solve a problem is much quicker and efficient. Now business wise, I know that mechanical engineers make at least $50,000 when they start off. They must also have a bachelor's degree in engineering in order to land a successful job. And that this is the perfect time to become a mechanical engineer because the generation of Baby-Boomers is retiring, so they’re looking for college graduates in engineering to replace them.

So, I compared my current knowledge with books and online articles that I found. And of course, I found that there were some gaps in my knowledge of mechanical engineering and some misconceptions about it too.

Although mechanical engineers do need to have a great understanding in thermodynamics, physics, and mechanical systems, they also need to know things like solid and fluid dynamics, heat transfer, and design. They’re also responsible for the thermal environment of their product, its subsystems, aesthetics, and the best way to manufacture them without failure.

One thing that I didn’t know was how long mechanical engineers had to work. I found out that the average mechanical engineer worked at least 40 hours a week, the average making $80,000 annually. And that this field’s employment will increase by 5% by 2024 according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Another thing that I knew very little on was the working environment. I thought that most engineers sat behind a computer and used three dimensional software to create new system and parts. But that’s only a small part of it.  They first meet with other professionals, company executives, and sales on what to do. After the requirements are specified, they then create the first prototype of the product. After the prototype is complete and functioning the way it’s intended, they work on ways to properly manufacture their product. The last step is to test it in the field. Even if it functions to everyone's expectation, they’ll still come back to it to see if it can be improved.

Looking back I what I knew about mechanical engineering, it was fragmented and incomplete. By all means, my knowledge of this field is still far from complete, but I feel like I have a better grasp on my field.

  I hope that this post helped give you a better understanding of mechanical engineering. If you liked anything in this post or have something to add, leave a comment and I’ll try to reply back as soon as I can.

The Misconceptions Behind Engineering

Prompt #1

By: Sadab Bahar

            Many people take this for granted, but engineering is essential to live the way we do right now. Engineers are responsible for keeping us safe, getting from place to place, and even making sure we have enough food. Think about your favorite sport and how engineering has impacted it. Most people think about the technology of the sport and relate that back to engineering, which is correct, but engineering is so much more. Engineers also design players’ jerseys, helmets, safety gear, and other equipment (Straten). The purpose of this blog post is to discuss the preconceptions that myself and many of the world’s population have on engineering.

Picture Credit: aticoexport.com

            Next, another assumption most people make is the field of engineering is male dominant. The reason many people think this is because of the high number of women that leave their jobs. A staggering 52% of women eventually leave their engineering careers (Joseph). This is a much higher than the rate men that leave their careers. In order to prevent women from leaving the field of engineering, we must understand why they do so. Many report bias toward men while others cannot balance their professional and personal lives.            One of the most obvious misconceptions that I, and most people, have about mechanical engineers is they simply design cars. While this is true, it only applies to a handful of mechanical engineers. A major part of mechanical engineering is design and the incorporation of proper mathematics and sciences (Lucas). The field of mechanical engineering is not limited to the scheme of cars. A mechanical engineer can design many every day household items whether it be a refrigerator or a simple pair of headphones.

            Additionally, many people assume that engineers sit on a computer all day, lack communication skills, and love mathematics and sciences. Another important engineering trait is the ability to work with teams. In order to work with teams effectively, engineers need very good communication skills to better solve problems and understand the particular needs of customers (Lucas). Engineers also, in order to further projects, must work with their hands. Although engineering is math and science orientated, it does not exactly mean they enjoy performing these difficult calculations.

            I used an authoritative introductory textbook in order to address many of these misconceptions that I have. The book is Thinking like an Engineer: Implications for the Education System. While this addressed many of the misconceptions that most people have on engineering, it provided little insight of the different fields of engineering. The book itself is mainly about how to improve the educational system that most colleges use to teach their students in engineering. I found it not that helpful with my research in the misconceptions of engineering. I relied a little more on internet sources. This basic resource was not that effective for this post because this post has little to do with the re-shaping of engineering curriculums across universities. 

             While the book lacked, I still learned a few things about engineering that I did not know before. I learned the overwhelming number of women engineers that leave their careers behind. This number shocked me because I cannot fathom inequality in the work place due to gender. Another thing I learned was that engineers do not necessarily enjoy sciences and mathematics. I, personally, enjoy mathematics, however, I am not in love with sciences. I did, however, know that mechanical engineers did not simply work with cars. Mechanical engineering is my current major so it is normal that I know more about the field.