The Engineering Project: Its Nature, Ethics, and Promise

Preface and Acknowledgments

I have been a faculty member in the Electrical Engineering Department at San Jose State University for many years. My technical areas of focus have been circuits, systems, and controls, but while Wnishing my dissertation in electrical engineering in the 1970s, I discovered philosophy, in particular , the nascent Weld of philosophy of technology. That early interest has continued and developed over the years—with an emphasis on the philosophical aspects of engineering ethics—and has led to my development of the ideas and material presented in this book. I am deeply indebted to Albert Borgmann for many years of inspiration . One of my fondest memories is, while on sabbatical from San Jose State in the middle 1980s, spending a couple of months sitting in his course at the University of Montana in Missoula. From his work I have learned much. Carl Mitcham also stands out as a philosopher of technology from whom I have proWted immensely, as do Langdon Winner, Andrew Feenberg , and Don Ihde. Feedback from friends and colleagues over the years has been invaluable. Among them are Mischa Adams, Harriet Brown, Stephen Brown, Jan Browne, Guy Cox, Jim Freeman, Chris Gaynor, Rick Gladstone, Fran Guerrero, Ken Harmon, Joe Herkert, Laura Hughes, Barbara Joans, John Lamandella, Kara Lindstrom, Pete Shanks, Lowell Smith, Michael Tanner, Vito Victor, and Kam Yuen. The editing work of Andrew B. Lewis has been of tremendous help to this project. Much of my work, at various stages of development, has been previously presented in the following essays: “Ethics, Ethos and the Professions: Some Lessons from Engineering.” Professional Ethics 4, no. 1 (1995). preface and acknowledgments “Engineering Design: Content and Context.” Journal of Engineering Education 83, no. 2 (1994). “Engineering Education in the Postmodern Era.” Frontiers in Education Conference Proceedings (1994), fie Conference in San Jose, Calif. “The Place of Focal Engineering in University Education,” International Symposium on Technology and Society Conference Proceedings (2000), istas Conference in Rome. “A Plea for the Practice of Focal Engineering.” Technology in Society 21, no. 4 (1999). “Technology: The Cost of Disengagement/The BeneWt of Disburdenment,” International Symposium on Technology and Society Conference Proceedings (1993), istas Conference in Washington, D.C. “Three Kinds of Ethics for Three Kinds of Engineering.” ieee Technology and Society Magazine 20, no. 3 (2001). viii preface and acknowledgments ...