Weapon Development &

Ethics

By : Yajur Mahendru

Points to be discussedWhy is weapon development ethics important

for engineers ?

Tracing the path of weapon development

Consequences of unethical use of weapons

Factors contributing weapon development

Concluding remarks

“Ethics is a branch of  philosophy that addresses questions morality— that is, concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, justice, virtue, etc”

-Wikipedia

What are ethics ?

Why for Engineers ?

Defence industry is one of the largest employer worldwideDecide accordingly whether to work in the area of weapon developmentWeapon developing engineering requires stringent examinations of ethical issues to ensure responsible participation

Should I….?

•Designed to kill human beings•Many ethical professionals will refuse to engage in weapon designing

•Morally responsible engineers find this to be ethically acceptable

•Change in opinion if national interests are not guaranteed

Think tanksDOD Science Boards

DOD Needs andProcurements

DODFunding

“Get us more bangfor the buck!”

AutonomousWeapon

Procurement

Contractor wins Autonomous

Weapon project

System& Design

Engineering

Testing, ValidationVerification

SensorAlgorithms

Sensors

Actuators andWeapons Interface

ArtificialIntelligence

PolicyInterface

War RulesDOD Doctrine

TreatiesEthicists

FieldDeployment

& Use

IntendedResults

CollateralDamage

Designers

GovernmentContractorBattlefieldGOODBAD

Tracing the path of responsibility

Weapon Development FactorsTechnological

Developments

Rise of terrorism

Race to supremacy

Threat to National Security

Consequences of unethical use of weapons

Hiroshima – Nagasaki Bombings

Kargil War

Iraq War

Conclusion

•Use of weapons in an unethical manner leads to loss of lives, infrastructure and capital•Unethical display of weapons may promote anti national activities within a country•Countries all over the globe must take steps in promoting a safer nuclear weapon free planet•Professionals must avoid in working on any projects which they deem to be UNETHICAL even if it leads to a CAREER ADVANCEMENT !

Golden Rule

“Treat others as you wish to be treated”

- Jonathan Granoff

ReferencesText courtesy:

- Answersingenesis.org - Engineering ethics by M.Govindarajan

- IEEE : Robotics, Computational, Intelligence, and Cybernetics chapter - Wikipedia.org

Image Courtesy:- Goodfinancialcents.com- Instablogs.com- Nonprofitday.org- Prosbeforehos.com- Realclearworld.com- Un.org