• Question: Is there an aspect of engineering that you would refuse to work on if given the opportunity?

    Asked by ThySociallyAwkwardOne to Iulia, Katie, Mateusz, Ollie, Siobhan on 13 Mar 2017.
    • Photo: Iulia Motoc

      Iulia Motoc answered on 13 Mar 2017:

      I haven’t thought of this, but I think I will not agree to work with nuclear weapons. That is definitely something that I do not agree with.

    • Photo: anon

      anon answered on 14 Mar 2017:

      I can’t work towards any weapons of mass destruction by law, nor would I want to do so, even if I could!

      I wouldn’t work towards anything serious like spaceship parts or cars, until I have sufficient understanding of how to make them absolutely safe for people who will use the finished spaceships and cars later.

      There are probably more questionable things related to engineering, but I think an inspiring story in a similar vein is that of Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, who has spent a lot of his life trying to alleviate the destructions caused by his invention. Check him out! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Nobel

    • Photo: Katie Pavey

      Katie Pavey answered on 14 Mar 2017:

      As the others have said, I’d struggle to work in weapons technology.

      On a more general note, I’ve tried lots of different types of engineering – manufacturing, computer programming, car design and technical sales. It’s good to try out lots of different types of engineering to find the ones you like best. I wouldn’t refuse to work as a designer or programmer, but I know now I definitely prefer working in technical sales.

    • Photo: Siobhan Duncan

      Siobhan Duncan answered on 15 Mar 2017:

      Any work that harms people.

      So I actively avoid money or projects funded by, or for, the army and other defence contractors.

      I want to help people not hurt them.

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