Technical expertise must be accompanied by an appreciation of the social, political, and moral questions involved in its application. However, because such questions do not serve a utilitarian purpose in achieving short-term economic advantage, they are generally considered as superfluous frills, lying outside the framework of technical education. Therefore, a new philosophy is proposed—one that incorporates values thought to be important for a humane, just, and sustainable society. The author shares a perspective gained from 15 years of engineering experience in industry and 15 years of community college teaching in engineering and technology.
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