Category: Semester

Volume 5 Issue 3 Winter 2022

The Ethical Implications of Climate Change and Future Inequality We Can’t Ignore

Amber Chow February 17, 2022

The impacts of climate change will disproportionately impact disadvantaged groups on regional, national, and international scales. The skewed vulnerabilities that arise from exposure to natural disasters, susceptibility to damage, and community ability to recover fuel the need to examine the ethical implications of producing greenhouse gas emissions in bulk for luxury purposes. As engineers are the creators of industrial processes, the responsibility an engineer holds towards themselves, the community they serve, and the future must be displayed through accountability for the cumulative impacts of each action.

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Volume 5 Issue 3 Winter 2022

Cyberwarfare Conundrum: An Ethical Analysis

Bram Lim February 17, 2022

Traditional armed conflict is subject to conventions that govern the way wars are fought and protect those who are not involved. However, thus far, there are no equivalents to the Hague and Geneva Conventions of war for the cyber world, where artillery and explosives are replaced by viruses and malware. Therefore, this paper argues that it is imperative to establish international regulations to keep cyberwarfare ethical, based on the foundations provided by existing warfare conventions.

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Volume 5 Issue 3 Winter 2022

Pitfalls of Predictive Policing: An Ethical Analysis

Jonathan Li February 17, 2022

Predictive policing is a police tactic that uses computer algorithms to predict where crime is likely to occur. This tactic, which has been used in cities like Los Angeles, allows the police to deploy more officers to “high-risk locations.” However, predictive policing violates the ethics of consequentialism and the ethical frameworks of justice and fairness by disproportionately targeting low-income neighborhoods and high-minority areas with increased police activity. Although boosting police patrols can deter crime in some cases, they also make people feel wary and frightened. Predictive policing is an unethical police tactic and should be further regulated or used in other manners. Crime should not be prevented by police-generated fear.

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Volume 5 Issue 3 Winter 2022

Now That We Have Your Attention

Noah Samuels February 17, 2022

In a traditional business model, companies provide a product or service to their customers. However, in today’s digital marketplace, users of a company’s app, website, or game are not the true customers. While users are able to access these apps for free, companies can then sell those users data and attention to advertisers and other interested parties. But in a world now dominated by surveillance capitalism, is the use of user data exploitation, or just good business? Tech companies must increase transparency of how they plan to collect and use data, and developers should refuse to use manipulative or addictive methods in order to capitalize on users.

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Spring 2022 Weekly News Profile

The James Webb Space Telescope’s Cloud of Controversy

Jackie Finnemeyer February 14, 2022

With the James Webb Space Telescope’s recent launch, professional and amateur astronomers alike will soon have access to images of the first formations of stars and galaxies in our universe. But will the history of the telescope’s namesake cast a shadow over its potential discoveries?

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Spring 2022 Weekly News Profile

A Bug’s Life: Insects as a Meat Alternative

Kaylee Tseng February 7, 2022

Meat and dairy production are two of the biggest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions and water consumption worldwide. The environmental impacts of meat products have led to a push to find meat alternatives that still provide the same nutritional value. Part of the solution may lie in the integration of more insects into our diet.

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Fall 2021 Weekly News Profile

The Replication Crisis: Issues in Scientific Research

Michael DeLucia December 13, 2021

In current scientific research, there appears to be a replication crisis in which results of publications cannot be replicated. While this may not impact the validity of the research, it creates looming questions and uncertainties for the products of that research going forward, and innovation in the space as a whole.

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