Engineering Ethics

Engineering Ethics is the application of philosophical and moral systems to the proper judgment and behavior by engineers in conducting their work, including the products and systems they design and the consulting services they provide. In light of the work environment that inspired the new Sarbanes/Oxley federal legislation on “whistle-blowing” protections, a clear understanding of Engineering Ethics is needed like never before.

Beginning with a concise overview of various approaches to engineering ethics, the real heart of the book will be some 13 detailed case studies, delving into the history behind each one, the official outcome and the “real story” behind what happened. Using a consistent format and organization for each one―giving background, historical summary, news media effects, outcome and interpretation--these case histories will be used to clearly illustrate the ethics issues at play and what should or should not have been done by the engineers, scientists and managers involved in each instance.

• Covers importance and practical benefits of systematic ethical behavior in any engineering work environment
• Only book to explain implications of the Sarbanes/Oxley "Whistle-Blowing" federal legislation
• 13 actual case histories, plus 10 additional "anonymous" case histories-in consistent format-will clearly demonstrate the relevance of ethics in the outcomes of each one
• Offers actual investigative reports, with evidentiary material, legal proceedings, outcome and follow-up analysis
• Appendix offers copies of the National Society of Professional Engineers Code of Ethics for Engineers and the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers Code of Ethics

Dr. Baura received her BS Electrical Engineering degree from Loyola Marymount University, her MS Electrical Engineering and MS Biomedical Engineering degrees from Drexel University, and her PhD Bioengineering degree from the University of Washington. Between her graduate degrees, she worked as a loop transmission systems engineer at AT&T Bell Laboratories. She then spent 13 years in the medical device industry conducting medical device research and managing research and product development at several companies. She holds 20 U.S. patents. In her last industry position, Dr. Baura was Vice President, Research and Chief Scientist at CardioDynamics. In 2006, she returned to academia as a Professor of Medical Devices at Keck Graduate Institute of Applied Life Sciences, which is one of the Claremont Colleges.

Throughout her career, Dr. Baura has championed engineering curriculum excellence. She has written four engineering textbooks, three of which are medical device textbooks. She is an ABET Engineering Accreditation Commissioner. In her new position as Director of Engineering Science at Loyola, she is constructing a general engineering curriculum that incorporates substantial industry input and prepares new engineering graduates for positions in the medical device, semiconductor, and wastewater treatment industries.