E125 Ethics Proposal – Would You Rather? (App) – Sean Thomson, Alan Christopher, Lingmiao Wang, Jack (Keug Jae) Bang

Motivation

The world has been growing more and more connected for most of modern history, and there is no reason to believe that this trend will change in the near future. As a result, people of all professions, and engineers especially, will be faced with numerous ethical challenges which simply wouldn’t have mattered in the past (e.g. is accepting substantial gifts acceptable if the established culture in which you are working accepts them, or should you adhere to the standards of the culture in which you were trained). Additionally, this global interconnectedness means the effects of products will have wider reaching effects than they might otherwise have, making it especially important that engineers be able to behave ethically. Unfortunately, ethics is not a topic which is thoroughly studied within most curricula. Our proposed application seeks to partially remedy this lack of engagement with ethical issues by giving engineers a convenient, engaging means of delving into and solidifying their ethical framework. Specifically, users of the application will be asked to determine which of two courses of action is morally preferable, and as a result be forced to consider moral conundra more thoroughly. We feel that this “learn by doing” approach is useful and appropriate first because it is engaging and voluntary, and second because we feel there is no better way to train individuals to recognize and resolve ethical dilemmas than by asking them to do just that. Additionally, we propose to use our application to gather anonymous information regarding the positions engineers (and perhaps other professionals) take on ethical issues. This information can then be used to help guide policy decisions, as well as to help shape ethics curricula.

Proposal

Our proposed product is an application with three levels of functionality. The first level is a “quick play” mode where the user is presented with two sets of images (left column and right column). Each set represents a different (ethical) scenario/item with the two pictures of each scenario depicting different aspects of that scenario. The user then has to decide which scenario is preferable. There is also the option to skip the displayed combination of so desired. The second level is more in depth and uses written scenarios rather than just images. It follows the same process whereby the user has to pick the preferable scenario but it allows the user to consider much more complicated scenarios and allows us to present the user with scenarios which cannot be condensed into images alone. The final level is a feedback screen where the user can review his choices and view trends data from just his responses as well as trends from the community of users. This screen also allows the user to browse scenarios by category (i.e. energy, manufacturing, business, etc).

This application forces the user to reflect on ethically controversial scenarios and by visually presenting different aspects of the scenarios, encourages the user to expand his thought process. Most importantly, the application forces the user to make an ethical decision of “which is more acceptable” taking the process from reflection to action. The application mockup was created on a web platform but can easily be adapted for mobile or tablet.

Logistics

Our primary objective will be to target a perceptive audience operating within the confines of engineering new technology and the onslaughts of the actions taken within these realms (i.e. engineers, businessmen/women, investors, stockholders). Although the product assumes some level of ethical background and knowledge on the presented scenarios, this level is quite small hence affording the general public to participate and assist in standardizing the ethical norms in our business practices and innovations. In order to secure revenue we will be approaching the funding aspect from multiple angles. In our initial implementation we will be aiming to develop a phone app which will either be made available for free with the stipulation that advertising be included in the interface, or for a small fee, the app can also be acquired free of advertising. A second means of funding will be to offer an incentive program for advertisers for a fee. By participating in this program advertisers award small monetary valued points (i.e. 1¢) each time a user accesses the app and completes a specified number of scenarios. Points are then redeemable with either said advertiser or affiliated companies. A third method for obtaining funds, which also highlights one of our main objectives in establishing this app, is to extract the resulting data and provide it as a commodity to interested parties such as engineering companies, future advertisers, and other participating stakeholders. Our hope is that these companies will use this information, perhaps in their recruiting processes, to continuously re-establish the standard of ethical thinking in engineering practices. Our presentation also includes some initial projections for startup funding, and how our product will proceed based on those parameters. Obviously with better startup funding comes a more user-friendly app and in turn a more substantial consumer base, hence garnering more accurate and efficient data collection. This enhanced sense of data collection will generate a clearer picture of the idea of ethical inclinations and their influence and engagement in modern engineering endeavors. We anticipate a short timeframe (1-2 months) for initial product execution and continuous product modification upon the initial release as revenue and consumer participation develops.

Appendix A: Proposal Mockups

Figure 1: Quick Play Mode depicting 3D printing vs animal drug testing

Figure 2: In Depth Scenarios Mode depicting DC-10 and Challenger accidents

Figure 3: Results Mode

 

Appendix B: Quick Play Sample Scenarios

Figure 4: Animal drug testing vs. 3D printing

Figure 5: Design (Efficiency) vs. National Security

Figure 6: Hydro Power vs. Solar Power

Figure 7: Automated Driving Cars vs. Genetically Engineered Children

 

Background

The thing with ethics is that its hard to define. For some ethics makes sense, for others, no matter how they look at it ethics just doesn’t come together. Its hard to explain to a an individual who grew up in a culture where gift giving is a necessity that it sometimes can be ethically wrong to give a gift to someone. Our project strives to tackle these situations. We want to define ethics for people in a way that is both casual and informative.

Using this as our goal we researched several venues expression and how to teach. On the way, we stumbled upon the use of entertainment as a tool for education. Entertainment is the key. People like entertainment, and especially nowadays with the world wide web, entertainment, publicity, and education can easily all be bundled together and linked up. So the question was, how can ethics be taught? The game called “To The Moon” spawned the idea for our project. “To The Moon” is a RPG adventure type PC game that is really fun to sit through and play, when you play a game, you empathize with the character you are in the game, you get into the situations as if it were a real life simulation, and in this situation, “To The Moon” magically created a storyline in which the ethics of engineering were pulled to the forefront. The audience of “To The Moon” was able to learn about ethics efficiently through the interaction of the main character and the plots and subplots that were described. Using this idea, we formed the basis of our project upon the idea of entertainment.

Introduction of Idea

Video games made nowadays are becoming more complex, weaving in moral decisions to create a deeper storyline. As part of our use of entertainment, we feel that the this shift in the industry towards morally ambiguous games is the perfect carrier for the messages of engineering ethics. Video games are more entertaining and engaging than educational videos or workbooks, and are an important part of one’s entertainment when growing up. If we design a video game with engineering ethics in mind, that videogame can facilitate the growth of morally sound decisions for future engineers, or people in general. Our video game would be a resource that would primarily be targeted towards high school or college students in the field of engineering. These age demographics also happen to play the most video games, but all age groups would be reached by this resource. Our idea is to put ethics education into a less obtrusive pill that is easier to contemplate. People like being told things, but they don’t fully understand them until they experience them. A video game about ethics would allow students to experience situations in engineering ethics, but without the real world consequences. We aim to make what is essentially an entertaining and reflective simulation of practical considerations in engineering.

Finer Details/Implementation

We aim to create an atmospheric episodic graphic adventure video game. This would be a point and click adventure similar to atmospheric games like “The Walking Dead” video game. The purpose behind this is that point and click adventures are easily ported on multiple platforms and put focus on the decisions, not the interaction that occurs in the video game. This way we can funnel players through ethical situations while still giving them the freedom to experience the impact of their decisions. Each episode in the game would focus on a separate facet of engineering ethics, which could include topics such as risk analysis, peer review, and conflict of interest. This game would be open-ended in the decision making process. Current resources such as “Henry’s Daughters” funnel the audience through a very scripted and openly obvious moral situation. The point of this videogame is to allow for personal interaction and highlight the grey areas through experiencing them in a videogame. There will not just be a right or wrong course of action, but many options to be made over the course of each episodic game. At the end of each game, players will have the chance to fully reflect on the outcome of their actions, and the game can provide information as to what might have happened with other choices. We believe that the true way of teaching is through experiencing, not just saying what is right or wrong. The game will be somewhat entertaining and placed in a situation that isn’t blatantly engineering ethics. Some ideas could be placing the player in the role of infiltrating corrupt biotechnology organizations (similar to Eidos’s Deus Ex: Human Revolution). When making a choice in the game, each choice will have an effect on the entire game. There will be no lives, just decisions to be made, with each decision having its own consequence. This game has the possibility of not just being a single player experience. Cooperative modes can be made so that each group of players must come to a consensus of what decision to make. The game will also integrate message boards and forums for players to reflect upon their experiences with the game. We feel that these features must be implemented because engineering is a very collaborative discipline, and the added dimension of communicating with other players adds another layer of depth to the open nature of ethical decision making. The goal is to make this resource not obviously a learning resource, but provide resources to discuss and learn about one’s decisions at the end of the game.

Future Application/Impact

The impact this will have is that our project will target the younger audience in an attempt to normalize learning. A parallel to having major literary works critiqued and read in class, our project is to have our story and entertainment idea known and played by a large group of people. In doing so, we can attempt to normalize the definition of ethics thus potentially getting rid of major disjuncts and grey areas that cause ethics to be such a hard topic of conversation. If our game can introduce basic ethical concepts to a good amount of people, building on top of those concepts in the future for ethics specialization would be much simpler.

 

E126: Ethics in Engineering and Business

Fall 2014, 4 units

Lecture: MW 10:00-11:00AM, C220 Cheit Hall

Discussion: F 2:00-4:00PM, C220 Cheit Hall

Course Description

Rarely can we separate ethical questions into either the realm of business ethics or the realm of engineering ethics. Engineers are frequently put in positions that affect business and vice versa. In many instances it is difficult to analyze an ethical issue from a single perspective. This course takes a hands on approach to understanding ethics through the use of case studies and discussions with representatives from industry. In this class we will consider both business ethics and engineering ethics an attempt to create a system of values to help facilitate students in their future endeavors.  Assignments include individual reflections on case studies. Students will be asked to analyze theses case studies from both an engineering and business perspective and make conclusions that try to satisfy both.

Objectives

• Analyze ethical issues from both a business and engineering viewpoint
• Understand compromises between business and engineering from an ethical perspective.
• Practice communication and presentation skills (especially about technical subjects to a nontechnical audience)
• Be able to identify ethical dilemmas and have a basic familiarity with approaching the problem
• Recognize and become familiar with different ethical philosophies
• Reflect upon the current role of ethics in the engineering and business industries and how it is effective or can be changed
• Differentiate between responsibility to self, society, government

Logistics

• Piazza will be our main course tool. You will be able to download course materials and announcements.
• We will go field trip on 11/27. Let me know if you cannot attend on the day. I can provide alternative way to fulfill the requirement.
• We will use Facebook group to post everything what you need to submit since you guys are on Facebook 24/7.
• There is no textbook for this class, save the Earth!

Assignments and Evaluation

Participation (35%)

Each student is expected to attend all lectures and discussion unless previously discussed with the instructor. The main purpose of this course is to develop your communication skills; active participation will be required, especially during discussions on Fridays.

Written Essay Responses (20%)

Throughout the school year, we will be watching two films (topic of films to be decided based upon student voting in the beginning of the semester) and a written response reflection will be required for one of the films. (Although not mandatory, you may choose to write a response on the other film as well and the highest grade between the two reflections will be counted) There will also be a written midterm where students will have to reflect upon the differences and similarities (if there are any) between managerial and engineering ethics and whether the two have the same expertise and responsibilities.

Case Study Report (25%)

Students will form a group of 4 students and research an ethical case study of their choice. Each student will analyze the decisions made during the dilemma from both an engineering and business managerial viewpoint and compare and contrast the two. Students will then create a 20 minute presentation discussing their findings and lead a discussion with the class.

Interview Report (20%) 

Near the middle of the course, students will be required to conduct an interview with an industry personnel (preferably one that has a technical background and has transitioned into management or vice versa). A list of questions will be provided to help you start the conversation but it is completely up to you what you want to get out of the interview.

CPA Students

Students who are interested in taking the Certified Public Accounting Examinations upon graduation are required to take 10 units of Ethics Related courses in addition to their Accounting and Business Related Courses. The Haas School of Business currently offers 7 units that count towards your Ethics Related course work, but with this class. Engineering 126 will allow student to fulfill their CPA Ethics requirements within the business school.

Group Project Formal Write-up

The following proposal is a movie night that aims to spark conversation about ethical issues in the field of engineering. The invited audience will be the general student body, not necessarily engineers by major. At the end of the movie night, the students in attendance should be more aware of the ethical issues of engineering around them; ideally, some, especially the engineers in attendance, will aim to improve the state of ethics in engineering. To each movie night, we will invite 10 to 20 people, so that the discussion remains intimate and everyone has a chance to divulge their opinion. An overview of the night will be described next, followed by a more detailed explanation thereafter. We will greet the students at the entrance of the building in which we are holding the movie night. We will tell them to get into groups of 3-4 people. Then, each group will be sent to a specific room inside the building in which we are holding the movie night. Here, they will be instructed to watch 3-4 movie clips (this is why there are groups of 3-4; each member of the group will rotate through watching all the different clips) from movies that are not from the featured movie. These clips will serve to provoke thoughts about ethical issues in engineering that will arise in the featured film. After everyone has finished watching their clips, they will be led by a volunteer of the movie night to the main room, where they will watch the featured movie. Then, post-movie, there will be a discussion, with an expert who has experience in a field that relates to the movie. He will be in the audience to clarify/correct statements made by the students in attendance. The expert will also serve to promote rich discussion and lead people to think about different ethical issues that relate to the movie/the industry in which he works.

The details of the movie night follow; they will be described via a real example of a movie night that we would put on. First, invitations would be sent out to the invitees. The first 15 who accept will be able to attend. We would have everyone meet in front of Soda Hall, in between Etcheverry and Soda Hall. The event would take place on a Friday night from 7-10pm so that people would be free and so that they can relax after a long week by watching a movie an engaging in a stimulating conversation afterwards. We will tell the students to get into groups of three. Each of the five groups will be sent to individual rooms inside Soda. Here, there will be three tablets, each with the movie clip ready to go. The students will be instructed to rotate through the tablets and watch the video clips. At the end of each clip, there will be 1-2 questions to consider about the clip. The questions serve to stimulate thoughts about particular ethical issues that were just seen in the clip, and will be seen again the featured movie. For example, if the feature film was “Moon”, the three clips shown would be from “AI”, “The Island”, and “Gattaca”. Some questions that could be asked, based on specific clips from each movie, follow. For “The Island”, we would ask “What is the cost of the human being?” based on the clip: The Island. For “Gattaca”, we would ask “What makes one human being better than another?” and “Do human genes define the human being/soul?” based on the clip: Gattaca.

Next, the students would be taken to HP Auditorium to watch the film. During the film, they will be asked to think about and write down ethical issues in engineering they would like to talk about in the discussion that will follow the movie. After the movie, we will have one of the group members, say, Ronak, go up to the front of HP auditorium to summarize what we thought were the main ethical issues that were brought about in the movie clips and the featured film. Then, we would introduce our guest speaker. In this case, we may get a professor who is highly involved in robotics/ genetic modification. We would say that he/she is here to moderate and stimulate discussion, as well as to put in his own input.

The discussion would start off by us having a raffle, just to get everyone a little bit more excited. Whoever won the raffle would get a prize, say, an Amazon gift card. But, there would be a catch. In order to claim the prize, the winner would have to be the first to express his opinion about the ethical issues in engineering he thought were brought up in the movies. He would have to discuss whether or not he/she thinks there was an ethical issue in the first place; if there was, he/she would be forced to tell the other students in attendance why he/she feels the way he/she does. In addition to that, he/she would need to identify real world situations where the issues he/she brought up were currently happening. Lastly, he/she would need to propose at least one solution to one of the ethical problems he identified. Indeed this would be a tall task, but a 200 dollar Amazon card would be a tall incentive. After he/she has received her prize, he/she will receive a ball to pass to anyone of his/her choosing. The person that receives the ball would then be forced to elaborate, agree, or disagree with the raffle winner. The ball and conversation would continue to flow in this manner, with the expert interjecting when he/she feels that what he/she has to say is important, relevant, or able to enhance the discussion being currently had.

At the end of the event, we would thank everyone for coming and dedicate a special thanks to our guest expert. Next, we would ask that those in attendance not stop talking about ethical issues in engineering when they walk out the door, but keep the discussion flowing throughout their time in school and throughout their careers. In conclusion, we felt as though a movie night is a very good way to start discussion about ethics in engineering. This is because oftentimes movies inspire, and we are striving to inspire people to talk about ethics. In addition, it is a relaxing environment that is entertaining and not too far out of the majority’s comfort zone. This is a large plus because getting people to do new things is much easier when they are comfortable and entertained in the environment in which they will be doing these new things. Lastly, movie nights like these can serve as a date that is conventional yet has a spin to it—something we think college students enjoy. This is good because people are more willing to do things they enjoy.

 

 

“Ethiquest”- An Engineering Ethics Game
Niranjan Kumar, Huda Iftekhar, Tim Koo, Kevin Cochrane

For this project, we had two main goals. First, our project should introduce others to the importance of engineering ethics and enable them to develop their ethical perspectives. Second, our project should capture people’s attention and be entertaining. In some ways, these goals are somewhat conflicting, but we felt that a good balance between the two would achieve our goals satisfactorily. After some discussion, we decided that the best way to meet these two goals was to make an ethics game. We titled the game “Ethiquest” as a concatenation of the words “Ethics” and “Quest.” Initially, we thought of making Ethiquest a computer game, but we then realized that a computer game does not facilitate interaction between players. From what we learned in this class, it is important to discuss your ethical views with others and hear their opinions. It is beneficial to understand others’ points of view and hear their response to yours, since it enables you to learn more about your viewpoint, including its potential flaws, and thereby develop your ethical perspective. Therefore, the ability for players to communicate is an important part of our game, and we felt that a computer game was not the best way to achieve this. Even for multiplayer LAN games with chat enabled, communication is somewhat compromised because the players stare at their computer screens exclusively and communicate with each other solely through text. A less technologically advanced board game, on the other hand, requires players to gather around the board and meet face-to-face. Our hope is that this will better facilitate the exchange of ethical ideas and viewpoints to make the experience more enriching for the players. In another effort to make Ethiquest more useful for players, the game presents dilemmas that are set in the high-pressure situations that often accompany ethics in the real world. The Event Cards in the game are miniature case studies that achieve this purpose.

Also, on a higher level, the game is not about simply making the obvious “ethical” choice. The game is structured as a race to finish, and the winner is determined not just by ethical integrity, but also by accomplishments and results. The final score is the sum of “Ethics Points” and “Quest Points.” In the game, there are many shortcuts which help players gain Quest Points at the expense of Ethics Points. The fact that the game is a race puts pressure on players to take these shortcuts, but those who finish with many Quest Points but too few Ethics Points will not win. This parallels the real world, where choices are not black and white. Life is about finding balance and most choices involve some sort of tradeoff between advancement and integrity. However, choices in life are generally not binary. When we encounter an ethical problem, it is not a simple yes/no choice, but rather a multitude of different options that are available, each with its benefits and drawbacks. For instance, an engineer working in industry with a family to support has several goals that need to be met. These include, but are not limited to, earning enough money to support the family, trying to earn promotions to advance a career, ensuring that his or her work is positively impacting society as a whole, being loyal to the company, and giving others involved in product development appropriate credit for their work. We thought about including such multi-pronged ethical dilemmas in Ethiquest, but we soon realized that this would be difficult to integrate into the game without making the rules overly complicated. Instead, we made each Event Card involve ethical dilemmas in many different ethical dimensions to simulate the multitude of goals one strives to achieve in life and the tradeoff involved in many everyday decisions.

In terms of physical implementation, the game board will be medium-sized, about the size of a Monopoly board, and will fit easily on a standard desk or table. Each player has one token to represent him or her. Over the course of the game, these tokens will move along a path on the board in an effort to finish first. The path will include some shortcuts, a visual representation of the kinds of ethical dilemmas that occur in the real world. Each turn, Event Cards, printed on cardstock, and about the size of a standard playing card, will be drawn. The Event Cards contain miniature case studies that enable people to think about issues similar to those they may encounter the real world.

Here is a picture of the Ethiquest game board:

Here is an example of an Event Card mini case study:
You are a chemical engineer and you are looking for a job. Chevron hires you as part of the “Environmental Cleanliness” unit which helps the company reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the US and comply with, and even exceed, EPA regulations. You happily take the job. Later on, you find out that this is largely achieved by outsourcing Chevron’s pollution to countries in Africa which don’t tend to have much environmental regulation. Will you whistleblow?

Our “kickstart” activity, designed to show other students this game and get them interested, will involve us playing one round of the game during our allotted presentation time. As we play, we will explain various features of the game and our rationale behind including them. Instead of boring the audience with the complete description of the rules at the beginning, we will give a brief outline and explain the subtleties as we play. We will station the game on one of the middle rows so that everyone can gather around and see it. The length of the game is variable, depending on luck and the choices made by players, but will design it such that the audience understands the main ideas of our game and how those ideas relate to ethics, by the end of the allotted presentation time. The goal of the “kickstart” activity is to get students interested in the game so that they will want to play it themselves afterwards. If sufficient interest is expressed, someone could make additional copies of Ethiquest and distribute them to people who want one.
We sincerely hope that Ethiquest will effectively convey the ideas of this class and encourage players to develop their ethical perspectives in a fun and engaging format.