Engineering in Society (1985) / Chapter Skim
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Pages 124-127
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From page 124... ...
Such is the case at present, and there is reason to think that the next generation of engineers will be somewhat more attuned to the marketplace than the generation that received their degrees during the decades in which government projects dominated university-based research. Charles Schaffner made this point most emphatically when he said: The engineering curricula of today, the products of the engineering schools, the growth of the faculty and of faculty types, and the directions and everything that was created following World War II, all stem directly from federal government decisions in terms of first, defense, and second, NASA.
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From page 125... ...
What is called for then is not a defense of the legitimacy of engineering, and certainly not a pul~licrelations style puffing of its achievements, but rather a patient, evidentially grounded examination of the ways in which engineering functions in contemporary society. The key here is to see engineering as a distinct activity in society, not as an autonomous enterprise that on occasion acknowledges its tenuous connections to society.
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From page 126... ...
Had this linkage been recognized, the "postmodernist" automobiles created by Sloan's designers to realize the strategy of the annual model change would be seen to be just as much a product of modern engineering as was Ford's Model T As things now stand, however, the postmodemists see no reason not to accept the modernist's identification of their doctrines with the essence of engineering, and engineers feel they have been treated unfairly when told they don't know how to deal with messy vitality.
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From page 127... ...
Nor does it signify, in any discriminating sense, being educated, for today nearly half those of college age are enrolled in degree programs of one sort or another. Had professional societies been more vigorous in exercising self-discipline, the concept of professional behavior might be more meaningful than it is today, but such has not been the case.
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