Professor
Kevin W. Bowyer
Homework Eight – Analogies between “Milgram experiments” and cases.
Professor Huff’s
presentation touched on the “Milgram experiments.” This
is the set of experiments where the experimental subjects played the role of a
“teacher” and were induced to give shocks (not real) to a “student” at the
direction of an “experimenter.”
First, summarize the basic
experimenter – teacher – student relationships in the Milgram
experiments, identify the conflicting responsibilities felt by the “teacher,”
and relate these to items in the Software Engineering Code of Ethics. (Are there elements in the code of ethics
that are analogous to the responsibilities felt by the “teacher?” )
Next, discuss the
appropriateness, or lack thereof, of the analogy between the experimenter –
teacher – student relationships in the Milgram experiments to the NASA – Morton
Thiokol vice presidents – astronauts relationship in
the NASA Challenger case.
Finally, discuss the appropriateness, or lack
thereof, of the analogy between the experimenter – teacher – student
relationships in the Milgram experiments to the SDI
Office – Computing consultants – citizenry relationship in the “Star Wars”
case.
You might, or might not, find the graph relationships
used to analyze the “dean’s pc” case study useful.
The normal two pages should be long enough for this
homework.