Nanotechnology and nanosciences have recently gained tremendous attention and funding, from multiple entities and directions. In the last 10 years the funding for nanotechnology research has increased by orders of magnitude. An important part that has also gained parallel attention is the societal and ethical impact of nanotechnology and the possible consequences of its products and processes on human life and welfare. Multiple thinkers and philosophers wrote about both negative and positive effects of nanotechnology on humans and societies. The literature has a considerable amount of views about nanotechnology that range from calling for the abandonment and blockage of all efforts in that direction to complete support and encouragement in hopes that nanotechnology will be the next big jump in ameliorating human life and welfare. However, amidst all this hype about the ethics of nanotechnology, relatively less efforts and resources can be found in the literature to help engineering professionals and educators, and to provide practical methods and techniques for teaching ethics of nanotechnology and relating the technical side of it to the societal and human aspect. The purpose of this paper is to introduce strategies and ideas for teaching ethics of nanotechnology in engineering in relation to engineering codes of ethics. The paper is neither a new philosophical view about ethics of nanotechnology nor a discussion of the ethical dimensions of nanotechnology. This is an attempt to help educators and professionals by answering the question of how to incorporate ethics of nanotechnology in the educational process and practice of engineering and what is critical for the students and professionals to know in that regard. The contents of the presented strategies and ideas focus on the practical aspects of ethical issues related to nanotechnology and its societal impact. It also builds a relation between these issues and engineering codes of ethics. The pedagogical components of the strategies are based on best-practices to produce independent life-long self-learners and critical thinkers. These strategies and ideas can be incorporated as a whole or in part, in the engineering curriculum, to raise awareness of the ethical issues related to nanotechnology, improve the level of professionalism among engineering graduates, and apply ABET criteria. It can also be used in the way of professional development and continuing education courses to benefit professional engineers. Educators and institutions are welcome to use these strategies, a modified version, or even a further developed version of it, that suits their needs and circumstances.
Engineering has always had a massive impact on human health and welfare. Unfortunately, the public only realizes the magnitude of this impact when very few engineering disasters occur, like huge oil spells in the sea or the failure of an aero-plane or a building. This is in spite of the plethora of engineering systems working perfectly around the clock to enhance every miniature aspect of public health and welfare. The ethical dimension of the engineering profession deals with the interaction with the public. However, engineering ethics are critical for reasons beyond keeping out of legal trouble and guarding the health and safety of humans. Ethics are necessary for the survival and continuity of the profession itself, amongst other reasons. Therefore, engineering codes of ethics have been set by professional societies and engineering ethics have been emphasized by accreditation organizations to be an integral part of the engineering curricula. In addition, ethics is the framework that allows the handling of evolving issues related to the profession of engineering. Examples of these issues include the globalization of the practice, continuous professional development (CPD) of the practitioners, and issues of emerging technologies (e.g. nanotechnology). In the midst of this huge dimension, the engineering instructor is challenged to incorporate engineering ethics in a packed curriculum. This paper will provide a quick overview of the basic concepts and definitions of engineering ethics as well as the importance of studying engineering ethics. Some recent engineering ethics challenges will be listed with focus on globalization, its influence on the professional and ethical side of the profession, and the perspective of the educator. Moreover, some suggested strategies and best practices to integrate engineering ethics in the curriculum will be discussed
Most engineering schools currently include a curriculum component that introduces students to the field of robotics. Multiple methods and techniques are used by engineering educators to help students gain familiarity and interest in robotic systems and their applications. However, very rarely the students get the opportunity to gain the ultimate experience of applying acquired knowledge of the field through building an actual robot. This is because building a robot during a college course involves multiple challenges including robotic systems high complexity and the requirement of combining multiple knowledge bases. Students studying robotics end up, at the most, programming purchased robots, or simulating robots using software, but not actually going through the realities and challenges of putting the system together and making it functional to the point of experimenting with it. In this paper, a unique experience in learning robotic systems and building actual robots is presented. This experience is made available in an elective course on robotic systems engineering at Grand Valley State University (GVSU), School of Engineering (SOE). The produced robots are two or three jointed arm configuration robots, controlled by a programmable microcontroller and built based on classroom gained knowledge. In the classroom, the students learn the kinematics and simplified dynamics of robots, as well as other related topics. In the laboratory, the students are required to apply the learned concepts of kinematics and design in combination with control systems to build a robot that will help them understand and demonstrate these concepts. The course final projects include robotic systems that are built or integrated by teams of students. These projects provide a range of challenges that extends from mechanical design to control systems. The projects are taken up by teams of students having diversified interests and skill bases within the course. The final outcomes of the course are working robotic systems that can demonstrate the students’ knowledge and interest, which the students use significantly as a proof of their competence level when putting together their resumes to move into the next level of their careers. From an educational angle, the course provides the students with an opportunity to combine multiple knowledge sets, skills, and interest to gain the ultimate experience in education: producing a functional system to specifications.
In this work, both the static and dynamic behaviors as well as the signal read-out circuits of ISFETs were studied. The standard NMOS structure in conjunction with the insulator-electrolyte capacitor was used to model the ISFET under study. The site-binding theory was incorporated to describe the chemistry occurring at the insulator/electrolyte interface. The mechanism of the threshold voltage drift was further explored. We propose that to better understand the drift, both slow responding sites and hydration effects need to be considered. It was found that, to better simulate the voltage drift, two exponential terms had to be employed with one governing the initial drift and the other the long term drift. In addition, a low noise differential signal read-out circuit was designed and simulation was carried out using LTspice. The output voltage of the system changes from −2.1 V to 0.5 V when the pH of the electrolyte changes from 12 to 0.
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