National Academy of Engineering Video contest

Posted on January 25, 2014 by maryesunderland

31 March 2014 – Submission deadline for the NAE (National Academy of Engineering) video contest.

As part of your group project you may choose to prepare a submission to the NAE (National Academy of Engineering) video contest. The grand prize for this contest if $25,000. The contest calls for videos that show how engineering has contributed to society and how engineering inspires you. For this class, in addition to the contest requirements, you will have to show one of the following:

how engineering has helped or will help address an ethical issue;
how the field of engineering is working with other disciplines to identify and address ethical issues related to technology, or ethical issues related to society’s needs that can be addressed by technology;
how the audience of your video can become involved in identifying, discussing, and addressing ethical issues related to technology or ethical issues relating to society’s needs that can be addressed by technology. this would essentially be a call to action and at the same time an inspirational movie about the achievements of engineering in service of society.

If you’re interested, there are a number of resources on campus that I can recommend to help you create an effective video. I might also be able to connect you with students that have expertise in short film making.

But remember, content is more important than form, so even with absolutely no experience or coaching in short film making you can create an extraordinary clip. For the purpose of this class, you will be graded on content only.

Fall 2013 Semester Logistics

Posted on August 28, 2013 by maryesunderland

Course materials, such as the syllabus, for the fall 2013 semester of Ethics, Engineering and Society (E125) at UC Berkeley can be found on Piazza.

The course explores new ways to make engineering ethics meaningful to students and centers on creating an engineering ethics ePortfolio, which includes six different assignments:

Example Post: Ethics in the Cloud

Posted on August 23, 2013 by maryesunderland

**Post by Jose Carrillo**

2/19/13: Software That Tracks People on Social Media Created by Defense Firm

Today, the internet has become an ever increasing part in our daily lives. It encroaches on everything from our social lives, to our habits. We are becoming addicts of “sharing” every moment and action we do (whether purposefully on Facebook, or unknowingly on Google). Every action on our smartphones, computers, and websites creates countless amounts of information that companies can “mine” in order to profit. While some of this data is extremely helpful in order to present people with news stories they are more interested in, make games more fun, make the internet faster, answer questions better, and display more relevant advertising, the shear amount of things you can learn about a person is unbelievable. The scariest thing of all is that most of us are not aware of how much information is really out there. All the way down to our habits, history, and location. Even more, there are currently few if any government controls on how this data can be used.

Recently, there have been a lot of developments in the field of computer science allowing engineers to create programs like RIOT, Raytheon’s data mining software that helps predict the movement of individuals based on their social networking. These programs analyze data that most people do not realize they have shared; data like IP addresses, exif data embedded in a picture (can include sensitive information like location), comments, check-ins, pictures, etc. All these things we post online contain all kinds of information from what we look like, where we are, what we like, who we know and socialize with, and what we are likely to do.

The creep factor comes in when you realize there are no limits to what this data can be used for, who can collect it, who can view it, and who controls it. Very few countries, if any, have policies in place to protect people from these kinds of privacy breaches. This makes me question whether it is up to me as a software engineer to draw the line on what types of data I collect and how it is used.

This privacy problem is not just related to spying and defense contractors either. It is an integral part of the development of the “cloud” going into the future. Companies like Google, Apple, and Facebook face the same types of ethical questions. Take Google for instance, they collect all kinds of data from every search you do and you do not even know about it. Everything from IP addresses, cookies, accounts, search terms, location, browser type, and computer and connect it to their ever growing network of data to build a profile on you so that they can serve you quicker, more relevant answers to your searches. But is this kind of data collection and privacy intrusion justified by faster, better, more relevant results? I do not believe current efforts at making users aware of exactly what and how data is used are enough. People are not in control of their identity online and this is a problem. For instance on Facebook, you have to go through some insane process to deactivate your account and even then they refuse to delete your profile unless you write an official letter. Unfortunately, this is one area where it is mostly up to policy makers to create laws forcing companies to be more clear and transparent about their data use. We need to escape the terms of service no one ever bothers to read.

Companies can and do mine all kinds of data from the web and can learn a lot about me from my likes, friends, hobbies, payment forms, purchases, location, house, habits, etc. I am fearful of the future thinking about the amount of data collected and what could be done with it if used for the wrong purposes or if someone got access to it. Facebook on the other hand, thrives from people sharing more and more information online. They want to become the hub of the internet connecting websites, people, services, apps, and events. Other services and websites even willingly create tie-ins to Facebook all in the name of increasing traffic (Spotify, Netflix, newspapers). They then use all this data to create more targeted advertising (a harmless end use in itself). But does Facebook need to consider its business practices in terms of such software as RIOT. Anyone can scrape Facebook for information on anyone else.

This raises the ethical questions of whether it is right to collect this data in the name of advancing technological innovation. Whether it is right to use this data if people are putting it out there willingly? Is it my responsibility to educate people on the data they leave around just by browsing the web? Should I as an engineer, draw the line and stop such data mining? Or is it justified just because people willingly post such data on websites like Facebook? Is Facebook responsible for what others do with the data it collects? If I were a Facebook engineer, do I have to consider these types of questions?

We are entering the age of the “cloud” and it is bringing about some of the most amazing technological innovations seen to date. Innovations like IBM’s Watson that can leverage all this knowledge online and one day help diagnose patients quicker. But is this enough justification for the collection and analysis of data? I have always been someone for innovation in the name of helping make the world a better place. As a computer scientist, I have always wanted more data because of the things you can accomplish with it; but now I am starting to realize the importance of a user’s autonomy online. Especially since the internet is essentially its own living ecosystem, independent of any one country. It is important to allow a person to control their information and how it is used in order to preserve the freedom that the internet has come to represent. It is one of the greatest achievements of this generation and I would not like to see it ruined.

This discussion brings about interesting viewpoints when considered from the perspective of the ethical theories discussed in class. For instance, from a utilitarian view point the internet is the greatest thing ever made. No issue of privacy can ever negate the overwhelming benefits and convenience of the internet. From a deontological viewpoint, the Internet is meant for all the right things but also has the responsibility of making it clear what data is being used in return for its services. These positive viewpoints are in line with how most people feel about the internet and at the same time have led to an overwhelming trust of it, a trust many companies now exploit. I believe that the internet has an unimaginable ability to do good in the world, but because of this very ability to provide us with services we are desperately addicted to, and its unregulated nature, it has created an environment full of promise and lacking any control. Anything is possible on the internet and that is not always a good thing (it reminds me of the iconic phrase “Who watches the watchmen?”). Who is to blame when it goes bad? And how do I as an engineer face design in an environment where I am the only one regulating anything?

It is especially hard to deal with these issues when people have become the product (most people do not realize that they are the product on the internet, their information, not the services they use). I as an engineer have a responsibility and duty to my company, but also a competing responsibility to the people. Moving in a direction that is beneficial to both groups is hard when their interest generally do not align (like Facebook wanting openness, and people wanting stricter privacy settings. It competes with Facebook’s need to make money).

Google’s mission is to index all knowledge and to one day answer any question instead of just showing you where an answer may be. Facebook’s mission is to connect everyone in the world and create an unprecedented human network of relationships, likes, loves, and personalities. The government’s mission is to protect its citizens (Every government shares this duty to its people regardless of whether it is a dictatorship, democracy, or communist).But at what cost? How can I as an engineer decide whether such techniques like data mining are ethical just because the end goal is good? How do I know where to draw the line? What should be my mission when it comes to privacy in the “cloud”?

Learning Portfolios and ePortfolios

Posted on April 4, 2013 by maryesunderland

During our semester together I have done a lot of thinking and researching about ePortfolios. The research has made me realize that I am asking you to build “learning portfolios” not “ePortfolios.” What’s the difference? Why does it matter?

Your learning portfolio is internal (between you, the instructor, and the GSI) and is focused on reflection and learning.

Your outward facing, public, ePortfolio focuses on showcasing what you know to a particular audience (you decide the audience).

It is probably more accurate to call your blogs “learning portfolios” rather than “ePortfolios” because ultimately your “ePortfolio” should only contain content that you have selected. Right now, your learning portfolios contain content that was assigned to you in E125.

In contrast, your more general ePortfolio should showcase only the work that you want to highlight and share. Your ePortfolio is a well-curated collection of the work that demonstrates who you are, what you know and how you know it. You might want to use it is a kind of resume that communicates your life goals and career aspirations.

The main reason why we are building portfolios in E125 is to meet learning outcomes – both the learning outcomes indicated in the course syllabus, as well as the learning outcomes that you indicated in your learning proposals.

Rather than handing in a bunch of assignments, your blog keeps them all in one place and allows us to give you more elaborate feedback. It also encourages you to reflect on your learning experience as a whole and to consider how all of the different class activities and discussions have contributed to your thinking about engineering ethics. Your Final ePortfolio assignment allows you to do this.

In E125, you are only required to build this more private, focused, learning portfolio. You are not required to make your blog public. Refer to the Rubric-eportfolio. You are only being evaluated on how you met the learning outcomes of the course.

That said, I really hope that some of you decide to make your private learning portfolio into public ePortfolios. If this is something that you are interested in doing, I would be happy to help you with the process.

Why ePortfolios and Engineering Ethics?

Posted on April 2, 2013 by maryesunderland

Despite the fact that ethics is recognized as an integral component of the engineering curriculum, engineering students do generally not perceive it this way. In fact, recent research shows that although faculty aim to communicate the nuances and complexity of engineering ethics, students perceive ethics as laws, rules, and codes that must be memorized. There are multiple reasons for this disconnect, including the separation between ethics research and ethics education, which is evident in engineering ethics. Although engineering ethics is an active field of research, as evidenced by journals, such as Science and Engineering Ethics, and funding infrastructure, such as the National Science Foundation Ethics Education in Science and Engineering program, engineering ethics courses often rely on standard engineering ethics textbooks. This makes pedagogical innovation difficult and also makes it challenging to update ethics curricula to reflect recent research findings.

In E125 we’re exploring how ePortfolios can be used to engage students in deep ethical learning. Portfolios have long been used to document learning, especially in fine art, architecture, and creative writing. Although paper portfolios are an effective way to showcase exemplary work, they pose some obvious logistical problems (e.g., they are cumbersome to transport and difficult to share with different audiences).

EPortfolios are a virtual space where students document and reflect on their learning and in doing so acquire 1) agency in their learning process and 2) an understanding of themselves and their capabilities.

In his book, Eportfolios for Lifelong Learning and Assessment, Darren Cambridge argues that two cultural ideals underlie ePortfolios: authenticity and integrity. Cambridge builds on the work of Charles Taylor to argue that ePortfolios enable students to articulate their authenticity by providing a forum where they can reflect on the relationship between their curricular activities and personal values. The idea motivating the construction of ePortfolios is that the act of writing and reflecting enables self-understanding. By expressing yourself, you call yourself into being. The act of reflection makes one more likely to act in accord with those expressed values.

ePortfolios make you think about how you think, how you learn, and also how you make ethical choices.

ePortfolios – Final Assignment

Posted on March 19, 2013 by maryesunderland

Your ePortfolio provides a virtual space where you can cultivate your ethical perspective. It provides a space for you to reflect on the questions that we revisiting during class discussions:

How does ethics intersect with developing technologies?
Can technologies be inherently good or bad?

Rather than focusing on the technical aspects of an engineering project, this class, and your ePortfolio allow you to develop the capacity to ask questions from an ethical perspective, such as:

Should we make it?
Are there alternatives?
Who will benefit from the technology (communities, individuals)?
Will anyone, or any communities, be harmed? What counts as harm?
How will the technology shape our daily lives now and in the future?
Does the technology damage the environment?
Create a new kind of environment?
Is it a short-term or a long-term solution?
Does it infringe on the rights of individuals? Of communities?
Does it promote freedom? Does it inhibit freedom?
Does it promote health?
Does it promote the development of new kinds of relationships

You’re going to have time to work on your ePortfolios during the remainder of the semester. Your final reflection is designed to allow you to pull all of your work together.

Now, you should look ahead to the final reflection (which ties to your learning proposal) and consider what you need to think about what you need to do to meet your learning goals.

This course is about self-directed learning. It’s not about me telling you what to think.

I’m here to introduce you to some resources, questions, theories, concepts and I can help you to find more information – books, articles, etc. that would help you to meet your learning goals. You will note that there are no more assigned readings for the rest of the semester. This does not mean that you should stop reading. Instead, it means that you should be seeking out and reading material that most interests you. So, for example, we just started talking about robot ethics – if this is a topic that interests you, there is a lot to read about.

You need to revisit your learning proposal and determine what you need to do to meet those goals.

Ethics, Engineering, and Society (E125)

Posted on December 18, 2012 by maryesunderland

What is engineering ethics and why do engineering students have to learn it? What does it mean to learn ethics? Why should engineers care about ethics? These are some the overarching questions that motivate our class discussions.

This site provides am entry point to the class “Ethics, Engineering, and Society” (E125), an upper-division engineering course at the University of California, Berkeley.

In E125 we work together to build resources with the potential to enable and encourage ethical thought and action.

Making Ethics Meaningful

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