Weekly News Profile Archives - Page 17 of 19 - Viterbi Conversations in Ethics

Spring 2020 Weekly News Profile

How an App Developer Broke the 2020 Iowa Caucuses

2/17/2020 On February 3rd, the first primary of the 2020 election cycle took place in Iowa, where the process has always been a little different.…

Spring 2020 Weekly News Profile

How do we Regulate False Medical Claims?

Isabel Yarwood Perez February 10, 2020 Biomedical Engineering Biotech Misinformation

2/10/2020 In a world of mass media where misinformation can be common, it can be very easy for companies to take advantage of the public…

Fall 2019 Weekly News Profile

Why Don’t We Treat Anxiety Like the Flu?

Georgia Babikian December 2, 2019 Illness Mental Health The Collected Schizophrenias

12/2/2019 As the flu season comes around, many people go to their doctors for check-ups and vaccines. My friend, who suspected she had the flu…

Fall 2019 Weekly News Profile

The Dangers of Drones

Connor Buckley November 18, 2019 Artificial Intelligence Drones Military

11/18/2019 The drone industry is growing rapidly, and many drone companies are pushing the limits of what is possible with drone technology. Engineering feats are being accomplished…

Fall 2019 Weekly News Profile

Sugar Pastilles, “Berlin Wall” Pills, and Duck Liver: Regulating Homeopathic Medicine

Tyler Amano-Smerling November 11, 2019 Alternative Medicine FDA Homeopathy

11/11/2019 Though they may seem vastly different to the standard vaccinations and antibiotics, supplements such as Anas Barbariae– extract of duck heart and liver– or…

Fall 2019 Weekly News Profile

How we Broke the 2-Hour Marathon 50 Years Ahead of Schedule

Tiarnan McCaffrey November 4, 2019 Running Sports

11/4/2019 This year, in mid-October in Vienna, Eliud Kipchoge broke the marathon record, running the 26 miles in just under two hours. His record is unofficial—he…

Fall 2019 Weekly News Profile

How Lab-Grown Brains are Challenging Our Concept of Sentience

Teagan Ampe October 28, 2019 Neuroscience Organism Sentience Stem Cells

10/28/2019 Growing human brains may sound like something out of a mad science movie, but believe it or not, scientists are able to do just…

Fall 2019 Weekly News Profile

Should we Colonize Mars?

Isabel Yarwood Perez October 14, 2019 Colonization Mars

10/14/2019 Since the discovery of liquid water flowing on its surface, the idea of colonizing Mars has become more and more feasible. Elon Musk and…

Fall 2019 Weekly News Profile

Ocean plastics: who is the main contributor?

Georgia Babikian September 30, 2019 Fish Plastic Pollution Sustainability

9/30/2019 “I can’t believe you’re even reaching for that plastic straw. How much do you hate sea turtles?” my friend says as I retract my…

Fall 2019 Weekly News Profile

How Airlines Could Set the Pace for Sustainable Travel

Connor Buckley September 23, 2019 Aviation Electric Aircraft Sustainability

9/23/2019 Today, global aviation accounts for 2.4 percent of total carbon dioxide emissions and about 12 percent of greenhouse gases released by the transportation industry…

Fall 2024 Podcast Fall 2024 VCE Podcast

Ethical Challenges in AI: From Mobile Apps to Self-Driving Cars

VCE November 17, 2024

Hosted by Aryan Shah and Deep Shah, with Ethan Oblea and Jack Wang In this episode of the Viterbi Conversations in Ethics podcast, hosts Aryan…

Fall 2024 Podcast Fall 2024 VCE Podcast

Bridging the Gap: Addressing Access Inequities in Emerging Healthcare Technologies

VCE November 17, 2024

Hosted by Aryan Shah, with guest Alice Hernandez In this episode, we dive into the pressing issue of access inequities in emerging healthcare technologies with…

Spring 2023 Volume 6 Issue 3

Redefining Societal Progress for Engineers

Natasha Singh March 29, 2023

Dr. Erin Cech’s critique of the National Academy of Engineering’s Grand Challenges focuses heavily on the pitfalls of technological determinism. This paper supports Cech’s argument through a discussion of current examples of the consequences of technological determinism, such as the Black Lives Matter and Me Too movements, medication accessibility, and facial recognition technology. Though the consequences of a zealous engineering mentality are commonplace in our society, there are also current examples of tech companies neglecting to develop technology due to its possible negative consequences.

Spring 2023 Volume 6 Issue 3

How the Technical Sciences and the Social Sciences Should Go Hand-in-Hand

Charles Liu March 29, 2023

The fourteen Grand Challenges presented by the National Academy of Engineers (NAE) fail to involve ethics as a part of the solution to these issues. Traditionally, engineers have kept their work separate from its societal implications. Engineers and their non-technical counterparts have an obligation to view all technical solutions under the moral lens of ethicists and futurists. Going forward, engineers must be aware of their limits and work with experts outside of their fields to develop solutions that will be cognizant of society as a whole.

Spring 2023 Volume 6 Issue 3

The Lies We Tell to Inspire: Responding to the Engineering Double Standard

Shub Gaur March 29, 2023

The National Academy of Engineering’s Grand Challenges are critiqued by Dr. Erin Cech for what she describes as a double standard in engineering. Though Cech rightly discusses a lack of accountability and acknowledgement within the profession, her argument lacks nuance. The Grand Challenges were ultimately a promotional tool meant to inspire the next generation of engineers, yet Cech holds them to a standard of being professional rules and guidelines. This paper will discuss the distinctions that Cech’s argument lacks, including placing an unreasonable amount of responsibility on engineers and overstating their influence.

Spring 2023 Volume 6 Issue 3

The Grand Challenges: Authorial Particularism and a Lost Opportunity for an Equitable Society

Huzaifa Aslam March 29, 2023

The fourteen Grand Challenges were developed by the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) in an effort to expose future generations to the wide range of innovation and technology that they could one day take part in. As detailed by the Challenges’ creators, the list includes challenges that are most significant to our current world. Dr. Erin Cech’s critique of the Grand Challenges is that a lack of diversity in the panel of engineering experts led to a lack of oversight into issues that are actually pertinent to developing nations. Cech’s argument that the Grand Challenges are a missed opportunity for social justice holds validity, but her mischaracterization of the lack of diversity requires further consideration.

Featured Spring 2025 Weekly News Profile

Preserving the Past: AI in Indigenous Language Preservation

Mo Jiang February 21, 2025

Recent breakthroughs in AI have expanded its use to translating endangered Indigenous languages. While it has promising preservation potential, these language technologies highlight the ethical scruples of using AI in cultural preservation. Careful attention is needed to implement AI preservation efforts that respect the sovereignty and cultural values of Indigenous communities.

Spring 2025 Weekly News Profile

Quantum 2.0— The Catalyst for a Cybersecurity Revolution

Mary Karapetyan February 14, 2025

Quantum computing is an emerging technology that leverages the principles of quantum mechanics to increase computational speed. Transitioning from theoretical research to industry, it has the possibility to propel research. While its power is promising, it poses risks to cybersecurity.

Featured Spring 2025 Weekly News Profile

CDC Censorship: Engineers to the Rescue of Public Health Data

Janessi Diaz February 7, 2025

A slurry of executive orders has led to a massive purging of public health information from the CDC and other federal websites. Thankfully, data-hoarding Redditors have come to the rescue by posting any information they had managed to salvage from these websites. As engineers, if we have the skill set we should follow suit and help with any effort to make this important data accessible to those who need it.

Spring 2025 Weekly News Profile

Fossil Fuels vs. Renewable Energy: How to Power the Tech Industry

Rachel Pak February 3, 2025

After taking office, President Donald Trump promised to increase coal combustion to generate power needed for AI data centers. However, new coal plants take time to fire up and are not suitable sources of backup power. Therefore, natural gas and geothermal energy offer the most likely solution to the rising electricity needs of the tech industry.

Spring 2025 Weekly News Profile

Gemini 2025: The Implications of Language Model Arm Race

Mo Jiang January 24, 2025

Google’s CEO Sundar Pichai aims to reach 500 million users for Gemini by the end of 2025. However, both corporate transparency and the current regulatory frameworks struggle to keep up with AI’s rapid deployment. This has prompted a need for engineers to define a balance between responsible development and rapid deployment.