An exercise in ethics across the curriculum

Module links: a guide

• This module is built around three shorts videos. These are listed to the right as prerequisite links.
• Mega Weapons Part One introduces you to the background of the case. It is put in closed caption and the script is just below.
• Mega Weapons: the Interview should be viewed after the introduction to the case. Here Jorge accepts the interview and faces the question of whether he is pacifist.
• Teaching Mega Weapons consists of a pedagogical demonstration of this module carried out on January 23, 2013. It summarizes activities and discussions that occurred during a fifty-minute class. The objectives of the demo are to show that the module can serve to introduce students to ethical decision making in a fifty minute class and also provides an example of what can occur as students discuss this case.
• Other links can help students who are interested find background information on the ethics tests. Kelly's Cosmetic Surgery applies the tests to a case taken from the APPE ethics bowl. Michael Davis discusses the tests in detail, places them alongside other tests, shows how these tests function in a larger decision-making framework, and argues in this paper that the tests serve as a useful basis for introducing moral reasoning.

Meta weapons script

PART I: Inside Jorge’s Kitchen—Day JORGE is sitting at the kitchen table with his laptop. He is looking online for job openings. Scattered around the computer are bills, letters of rejection, and job application forms. There is also a flyer from a Pacifist organization.The phone rings.

ANTONIO, JORGE’S friend, is calling… JORGE: Hey Antonio! How are you? (Reduce pause if possible)ANTONIO: I’m good. How about you? JORGE: I’m okay. But the job hunt isn’t going well.ANTONIO: Maybe I can help. I know of a job opening that fits your skills. Mega Weapons is looking for someone with your expertise to develop the guidance system for their new generation of Smart Bombs. JORGE: Wait a minute! These are bombs. They are designed to kill people. And no matter how smart they are, they are going to kill innocent people, civilians. Calling it “collateral damage” doesn’t erase the fact that you are asking me to become a willing accomplice to the killing of innocent people!

ANTONIO: But here is where you can make a difference. The better designed these bombs are, the more accurate their guidance systems, the less likely they will kill innocent people. (Reduce pause) By putting your skills to work here, you can promote the cause of Pacifism (accent first syllable) by minimizing the chances of unintentional harm. (Reduce pause if possible) And if you think that there aren’t some real war mongers waiting in the wings to take this job, you’re being naïve. You need to realize that you live in the real world, not some utopia where everybody loves one another and peace rules. JORGE: You’re twisting things. I am a Pacifist. How can I remain true to my beliefs if I am using my engineering skills to make war? You’re asking me to go against my basic principles.