ENGR 482 Exam 2 Questions and Complete Solutions Graded A+

ENGR 482 Exam 2 Questions and Complete Solutions Graded A+ The risk of some unwanted event is the product of its probability and the value of harm caused, in units of _____. - Answer: Appropriate units of the harm being caused (risks with different harms cannot be added or directly compared) "Engineers shall avoid deceptive acts" is best described by: a. preventive ethics b. aspirational ethics c. prohibitive ethics - Answer: c. prohibitive ethics What was the result of the New London school explosion? - Answer: The Passage of the Texas Engineering Practice Act The knowledge and acceptance of "blow by" of hot gases during the launches of the space shuttle are an example of_____. - Answer: Normalizaton of Deviance The precautionary principle states that, "When an activity raises threats of harm to human health or the environment, precautionary measures should be taken..." - Answer: "...even of the cause and effect relationships are not fully established scientifically." Which of the following is considered whistleblowing? a. telling your supervisor about the imperfect performance of your teammates b. telling your boss's boss about the immoral and illegal issue that you had already reported to your direct supervisor, who has not acted on your report after a reasonable amount of time. c. Telling a regulator about an illegal issue that you had already reported through all appropriate internal channels, but which has not yet been addressed after a reasonable amount of time. d. All of the above e. (b) and (c) - Answer: e. (b) and (c) True or False: Reports on Challenger and Columbia showed that NASA had made little progress changing their safety culture in the seventeen years between disasters. - Answer: True Which ethical theory best describes Michael Davis' account of whistleblowing, which is a complicity-avoiding account that highlights an individual's (more or less direct) participation in the moral wrongdoing of a company? - Answer: Kantian Ethics Roger Boisjoy is best known for... - Answer: having raised serious concerns about the O-rings before the launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger. Which of the following is not one of the Fundamental Canons in the NSPE Code of Ethics? a. Hold paramount the safety, health, and welfare of the public. b. Avoid deceptive acts. c. Issue public statements only in an objective and truthful manner. d. Conduct themselves honorably, responsibly, ethically, and lawfully so as to enhance the honor, reputation, and usefulness of the profession. e. None of the above (i.e., all of the above are Fundamental Canons). - Answer: e. None of the above (i.e., all of the above are Fundamental Canons). True or False: After the loss of the Challenger, NASA's culture changed considerably, and an overreaction to safety concerns was an ironic factor in the loss of the Columbia. - Answer: False What does the obligation to satisfy the "standard of care" mean for engineers? - Answer: The engineering errors found are similar in number and degree to those that would be found in the work of a normal competent practitioner working in the same area. Which of the following characteristics are common in teams at risk of groupthink? a. A lack of commitment to a shared goal b. A poor track record of success on previous projects c. A tendency to critically assess objective data used in decision-making d. Shared leadership e. Solidarity and Loyalty - Answer: e. Solidarity and Loyalty Under the Texas Engineering Practice Act, a licensed engineer may reveal confidences and private information of a client: a. As long as the confidences and private information revealed do not harm the client; b. With a fully informed client's or employer's consent or when required by law or court order; c. When those confidences, if left undisclosed, would constitute a threat to the health, safety or welfare of the public; d. (b) and (c) e. (a), (b), and (c) - Answer: d. (b) and (c) True or False: After the loss of the Challenger, NASA's culture changed considerably and received minimal blame in the loss of the Columbia. - Answer: False Which actions contrary to accepted engineering practice were made on the Deepwater Horizon before its blowout? - Answer: ***Decisions were made the used a flawed interpretation of the precautionary principle. True or False: Roger Boisjoy "blew the whistle" before the launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger, which he did by contacting the executive director of NASA - Answer: False You have just completed a load and resistance factor design (LRFD) analysis for the replacement bridge following the highly profitable sale of the iconic Brooklyn Bridge. Although you have carefully followed all applicable codes and standards, your design still has some limitations associated with all probabilistic models: a. Probabilistic models have shortcomings similar to what is found in duty ethics, where a central problem is universalization. b. Probabilistic models have shortcomings similar to what is found in ethical egoism, where self-concern is always an issue. c. Probabilistic models have shortcomings similar to what is found in virtue ethics, where the idea of prudence provides less guidance than most people hoping to act ethically would prefer. d. Probabilistic models have shortcomings similar to what is found in utilitarianism, where the distribution of benefits and harms does not necessarily overlap - Answer: d. Probabilistic models have shortcomings similar to what is found in utilitarianism, where the distribution of benefits and harms does not necessarily overlap and informed consent is usually given short shrift. According to the NSPE Code of Ethics, what must an engineer do regarding conflict of interest situations? - Answer: Disclose potential, actual, or apparent conflicts of interest to all parties In what way might an act utilitarian respond to a mandate requiring engineers to "issue public statements only in an objective and truthful manner"? a. It is morally right to follow this mandate if it is motivated by statistical evidence showing objectivity and truthfulness to be generally good. b. This mandate is only morally right if it passes the tests of the categorical imperative. c. The moral rightness of following this mandate must be determined by the consequences of following it in each case. d. It is morally right to follow this mandate because an engineer will be punished for violating it. e. Following this mandate will allow an engineer to achieve eudaimonia (happiness or flourishing). - Answer: c. The moral rightness of following this mandate must be determined by the consequences of following it in each case. Which of the following accurately describes the decisions to (a) line the wastewater disposal ponds and (b) shrink the plant size from the initial specifications made in Incident at Morales? a. Both (a) and (b) are proper engineering decisions. b. Both (a) and (b) are proper management decisions. c. a) was a proper engineering decision, while (b) was a proper management decision. d. (a) was a proper management decision, while (b) was a proper engineering decision. e. (a) was a proper management decision, and (b) was not made. - Answer: c. a) was a proper engineering decision, while (b) was a proper management decision. Which of the following best describes what happened to Courtland Kelley, as described in the "GM Recalls" article? a. He was fired and successfully sued GM for compensation under whistleblowing laws. b. He was fired for ignoring internal channels and immediately whistleblowing to the media. c. He was transferred to another position that effectively ended his career. d. He was promoted on account of his efforts to make GM cars safer. e. He was promoted based on his internal whistleblowing efforts, which helped the company avoid many lawsuits and to remove several incompetent managers. - Answer: c. He was transferred to another position that effectively ended his career. Would a virtue ethicist embrace the slogan "Fearless on Every Front"? - Answer: Yes, because fearlessness is a virtue that can be learned through instruction. §137.55 of the TEPA states that "engineers shall protect the public." What best summarizes the constraints put on the functions performed by engineers? - Answer: Engineers shall not perform any act that will possibly result in the endangerment of public health, safety, welfare, or 23. In what way might a Kantian assess the NSPE fundamental canon requiring engineers to "issue public statements only in an objective and truthful manner"? - Answer: Truthfulness is what makes the act of communicating have any value at all, so it is morally right to make such state What is the "industry exemption" in the TEPA? - Answer: It exempts some individuals engaged in engineering practice employed by firms whose projects are not accessible to the general public from licensing requirements. Which of the following resulted from the New London school explosion? a. a mal-odorant was added to methane gas. b. The engineer in charge of the project was sentenced to 6 years in prison. c. The state of Texas passed the "industry Exemption" to the TEPA. d. (a) and (b). - Answer: a. a mal-odorant was added to methane gas. What is the "illusion of unanimity" in groupthink? - Answer: Silence is misconstrued as consent, and all individuals in the group are assumed to be in agreement about a given issue. True or False: Both the Challenger and Columbia disasters were blamed on both technical and organizational issues. - Answer: True According to the NSPE code of ethics, an engineer shall hold paramount... - Answer: the safety, health, and welfare of the public. Which of the following is true about the engineering definition of risk? a. very large risks can always be balanced against other large and probable benefits. b. small risks can always be balanced against other equally small and probable benefits. c. very large risks can always be balanced against sufficiently many small but improbable benefits. d. the engineering definition does not consider benefits. - Answer: d. the engineering definition does not consider benefits. Proper Engineering Decisions involve... - Answer: technical matters that require engineering expertise True or false: in Incident at Morales, Fred was generally able to identify technical concerns but not always able to convince management to respond to them as he thought they should. - Answer: True Most fundamental canons in the NSPE code of ethics are... - Answer: Prohibitive according to the TEPA, an engineer that may be put in a potential conflict of interest should... - Answer: notify all parties in writing about the potential conflict of interest and receive written confirmation that the notification was received. Is a person who refuses to carry out an assignment because of moral objections considered a whistleblower? - Answer: No. This is just disobedience by nonparticipation What constitutes the principal focus of the engineering definition of risk? - Answer: Calculation of quantifiable measures of likelihood of a harm and the magnitude of the harm. What is a "conflict of interest" situation? - Answer: A situation in which one's personal interests could reasonably be expected to affect one's professional judgment. Which of the following contributed to the Morandi Bridge collapse? a. freezing temperatures b. insufficient maintenance c. improper use of cost-benefit analysis d. a and b e. a, b, and c - Answer: b. insufficient maintenance What conditions may exist when the precautionary principle is appropriately invoked? - Answer: The potential harm is serious or irreversible, and the cost of acting is reasonable. How would a Kantian assess the demand for "honesty and impartiality" expected by engineers in their professional activities expressed in the preamble of the NSPE code of ethics? - Answer: Honesty and impartiality are required of all rational agents, so engineers should act in this way anyway. True or false: In the probabilistic model for risk management, the risks involving possible deaths are directly comparable to risks involving economic losses. - Answer: False. They have different units of harm and thus cannot be directly compared. What are the 4 limitations to the probabilistic model for risk? - Answer: 1. The probabilistic model is utilitarian. 2. The probabilistic model is not "risk averse." (it does not tell you to avoid risks of a certain magnitude) 3. Some risks are not probabilistic. (some events do not have known probabilities) 4. The probabilistic model cannot explain how risk is perceived by the public. According to the textbook, the cost-benefit analysis defines acceptable risk as... - Answer: "An acceptable risk is one in which the product of the probability and magnitude of the harm is equaled or exceeded by the product of the probability and magnitude of the benefit" Difference between the Probabilistic Model of Risk (PMR) and Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA)? - Answer: The PMR only gives you a relative magnitude of risk, and the CBA is a way of determining whether a particular risk is morally acceptable. The "Respect for Persons" approach to acceptable risk says that... - Answer: "An Acceptable Risk is a risk that is freely assumed with informed consent or properly compensated..." When imposing a risk on others, we are not permitted to treat them in a way they would not consent to, or rational people could not consent to. "Where there is risk of irreversible or serious damage to the environment, lack of full scientific certainty shall not constitute a reason to postpone preventative or ameliorative action" This states which principle? - Answer: The Precautionary Principle True or False: According to the precautionary Principle, it is better to get false negatives than false positives. - Answer: False What is the difference between "tight coupling" and "complex interactions"? - Answer: tight coupling is temporal (i.e. events happen too quickly for response), while complex interactions are those where one event affects other systems or exacerbates other events in an unexpected way. technocratic model of risk management holds that... - Answer: "technocrats" (experts) should be in charge of determining how we handle and manage risk. (Engineers call the shots) democratic model of risk management holds that... - Answer: we should be democratic and that all parties, even laypeople, should have a say in how we manage risk. 8 Symptoms of groupthink? - Answer: Illusion of invulnerability of group o Shared stereotypes o Rationalizations o Illusion of morality o Self-censorship o Illusion of unanimity o Direct pressure to agree o Mind-guarding (keeping dissenters away from the group) What is "Normalization of deviance"? - Answer: the tendency to come to consider behavior that varies from either good design or good engineering practice as acceptable. Proper Engineering Decision (PED) - Answer: a decision that should be made by engineers or at least governed by professional engineering standards because it either (1) involves technical matters that require engineering expertise or (2) falls within the ethical standards embodied in engineering codes, especially those that require engineers to protect the health and safety of the public. Proper Management decision (PMD) - Answer: a decision that should be made by managers or at least governed by management considerations because it (1) involves factors relating to the well-being of the organization, such as cost, scheduling, and marketing, and employee morale or welfare; and (2) the decision does not force engineers (or other professionals) to make unacceptable compromises with their own technical or ethical standards. Part of what makes something a PED is_____. - Answer: ethical responsibility 2 components int he definition of whistleblowing? - Answer: (1) One reveals information that the organization does not want to be shared with the public or some authority. (2) one does this outside of approved channels in the organization. 6 Fundamental Canons of the NSPE Code of Ethics - Answer: 1. Hold paramount the safety, health, and welfare of the public. 2. Perform services only in areas of their competence. 3. Issue public statements only in an objective and truthful manner. 4. Act for each employer or client as faithful agents or trustees. 5. Avoid deceptive acts. 6. Conduct themselves honorably, responsibly, ethically, and lawfully so as to enhance the honor, reputation, and usefulness of the profession. What is expressed by "Action in another jurisdiction" in the TEPA? - Answer: "The engineer shall not practice or offer to practice engineering in any other jurisdiction in violation of the laws regulating the practice of professional engineering in that jurisdiction." If you're a licensed PE in Texas, you can be held accountable for doing work outside of Texas. "Dishonesty" can take the form of... (4) - Answer: 1) Lying. 2) Deliberate Deception. 3) Withholding Information. 4) Failure to Seek Out the Truth. True or False, the Texas Board of Professional Engineers (TBPE) is responsible for reviewing the conduct and ethics of practicing engineers. - Answer: True What were the major problems with the "innovative" design employed in the Morandi Bridge? - Answer: 1. There was only one beam supporting each side - providing for no redundancy. 2. There were fewer cables than in most designs. 3. There was an inability to properly inspect the steel reinforcement in the concrete beams What organizational issues contributed to the Morandi Bridge Collapse? - Answer: 1. Inadequate maintenance provisions by owners and management. 2. Privatization of public infrastructure (i.e. Autostrade).