EG2401 Project Assignment

CREATIVE MIDDLE WAY IN PRACTICE

Submitted By:Toh Leh Hwang Jeremy U095920A

Tan Jia Yang David Cung

1. Definition of Creative Middle Way

Creative middle way involves looking for a way to resolve conflicting values that comes

as close as possible to satisfying all relevant and legitimate obligations and hence,

reducing as many damages as possible. It honors several obligations, but perhaps not in

their purest form. This is caused by the necessity to compromise among several

competing obligations that have their own legitimate claims (Harris).

2. General Considerations for a Creative Middle Way

There are various general considerations to take note of when formulating creative

middle way.

Firstly, the competing or conflicting ethical views and issues of opposite sides should be

identified and considered during the process of coming with creative middle ways. The

four basic ethic theories and issues – which consist of Right Ethics, Duty Ethics,

Utilitarianism and Virtue Ethics – have to be identified first. This is to ensure that the

competing views are taken into account in the creative middle way.

Secondly, the compromise resulting from the possible creative middle ways of both

affected parties should be identified and considered. Both competing views should be

honoured to the fullest extent possible, without penalising either side unduly. This would

require good judgment and constant discussion between both parties to reach a creative

middle way.

Thirdly, during the application of creative middle way concept, it should be kept in mind

that two extremes must be avoided (Harris). One extreme is moral laxism. Moral laxism

involves an abandonment of ethical and professional considerations and may in some

cases even lead an engineer to embrace choices that are illegal. The argument is that the

violations of moral principles are simply part of the price of living in the ‘real’ world,

especially in the world of another and very difficult culture. Another extreme is moral

rigorism. It involves carrying out actions that is excessively moralistic, as opposed to

moral laxism. It holds that moral principles are to be strictly applied in every situation.

Such belief may not be practical for resolving situations whereby both parties make

legitimate claims. A creative middle way that is morally laxist or rigorist would result in

impractical or unfair treatment to a legitimate claim. Hence, during the formulation of

creative middle way, both moral laxism and rigorism should be avoided.

3. General advantages and disadvantages of creative middle ways

General advantages

a.  Formulating creative middle ways forces the individuals to deal with the problem of

dilemma instead of ignoring it or stopping the progress. (Lecture Note)

b. There are easy choices in moral situations. However, there are difficult choices as well

when there are two conflicting moral values that are both justified. In such situations, all

values make legitimate claims on us so that the ideal resolution of the conflict is to find

ways to honor each of them. However, this may not be possible in most cases. Hard

choices that are hastily made may subject a party to unduly unfair judgment. By coming

up with a creative middle way, it can at least ensure that the conflicting views are

partially met, thereby ensuring adequate amount of fairness for both sides.

c. If one pursues the legal way to bring an end to a conflict, verdict from judge will most

likely benefit the winning party only. This may be unfair to the other party even though

its claim is also legitimate. Using a creative middle way solution can avoid such situation.

General disadvantages

a. Solution may only partially meet the conditions of both parties and hence, the full

condition demanded by each party may not be completely satisfied. Thus, compromise of

conditions and principles of both sides may be necessary at times.

b. The creative middle ways even though desirable, may not be technically feasible for

some cases. For example, a factory produces chemical waste that was later found to be

harmful but closure of the factory would entail losses of jobs. The creative middle way is

to manage the waste before it is dumped. However, this might not always possible

because of the limitation of current technology.

4. Considerations in the search for and application of the creative middle ways

specific to 3 engineering cases and the feasibility and utility of the solution to the

ethical dilemmas of these engineering cases.

As mentioned in part 2, during the application of creative middle way, the conflicting

ethical issues of both legitimate claims are to be identified, taken into account and

honoured to the fullest extent possible in the creative middle way. The considerations and

creative middle way for the 3 engineering cases are analysed below.

1. Information Technology Engineering: Usage of an online computerized database

From the point of view of Act Utilitarian:

An online computer database can allow authorised organisation to access required

information with ease without having to go through the arduous manual process of

recollection of data. For example, an established database is particularly useful for

governmental organisations that require certain data for economic analysis such as

unemployment rate and household income or for other purposes. In the long run, creating

a centralised electronic database to store and retrieve information can increase the

efficiency of authorised organisation to perform peripheral tasks (Harris).

From the point of view of Rights ethics:

Privacy of individuals may be invaded without their consent or subjected to abuse by

personnel who can gain access to sensitive personal information. Also, the privileged

information of an individual may subject him or her to unfair scrutiny and judgment,

should such information be landed into wrong hands. For example, one may be subjected

to unfair discrimination during job application if one reveals to be of certain race or

gender preference. Essentially, computerised databases possess the potential for violating

important personal values, especially those values associated with respecting the moral

agency of individuals (Harris).

Creative Middle Way:

It would be impractical to completely eliminate the computerised database for the sake of

protecting the individuals’ rights. The individuals’ rights also have to be duly taken care

of when constructing such computerised database. As such, there needs to be a balance in

which the individuals’ rights are duly respected while allowing the smooth operation and

utilisation of the database. One of the earliest creative middle ways to such issue was the

Privacy Act passed by the U.S. Congress in 1974. The regulation includes the following

provisions:

1. The existence of data systems containing personal information should be made known

to public.

2. Personal information should be collected for narrow, specific purposes and used only

in ways that are similar to and consistent with the primary purposes for its collection. In

other words, unnecessary information should not be collected so as to protect the rights of

the individuals to the fullest extent.

3. Personal information should be collected only with the informed consent of the persons

about whom the information is collected or their legal representatives.

4. Third parties should not access to personal information without the consent of

individuals.

5. To ensure accuracy, the time information can be stored should be limited and

individuals should be permitted to review the information and correct errors.

6. Security and integrity of personal data systems should be kept at a very high level.

Advantage of the Creative Middle Way

a) These guidelines ensure that during the design and the execution of the use of the

computerised database by computer engineers, an adequate protection of privacy of the

masses is ensured. Not only are the individuals’ rights respected to an adequate degree

but authorized organisations are also able to reap the efficiency benefits of such

computerised database.

Disadvantages of the Creative Middle Way (Harris)

a) The provisions may concede too much to the demands of individual privacy. As such,

it may impede the process of data collection from individuals, resulting in back-end

problems for organisations that require efficient data analysis. For example, the policy-

making decisions that are mostly based upon data may be affected.

b) Difficulties may be encountered to secure the informed consent of everyone from

whom the information is collected. As consent must be obtained before information may

be shared with third parties (including, presumably, other databases), recurring requests

to share the same information could become a nuisance, resulting in inefficiency.

c) The requirement that information about an individual should be limited in duration

means that some of the same information would have to be collected repeatedly,

presumably with the consent of the person from whom the information was derived.

d) The right to correct errors in the information by individuals may also be subjected to

abuse. Some individuals would probably want to change information about them that

does not reflect well on them, even if it is correct.

2. Civil Engineering: Massive MRT construction plans resulting in noise pollution to

nearby residents

From the point of view of Act Utilitarian:

Construction of massive construction lines can greatly increase the transportation

efficiency of the population, especially those who are reliant on public transportation.

From the point of view of Rights Ethics:

The construction of the MRT often comes at the cost of the rights of the nearby residents

to live in a comfortable environment, which includes a minimal noise environment.

Creative Middle Way:

The attempted creative middle ways aim to reduce the discomfort of the nearby residents

while allowing the smooth operation of the MRT construction. There are various actions

taken by the governmental boards and most are aimed towards reducing the noise levels.

The policies or actions that are indicative of signs of middle way solution include:

a) Noise level limit: According to the National Environmental Agency (NEA)’s

Environmental Protection and Management Act, the period and noise level where

construction takes place should be strictly restricted to that stated by the law. The

construction work is usually carried out during the morning to afternoon period when

most residents are away for work and/or study. Construction companies are required to

take noise abatement measures and manage their works to comply with the noise limits.

(http://app2.nea.gov.sg/topics_noise.aspx). Fines are imposed on the construction

companies if noise level exceeds the stated legal limits and complaints are filed by

residents. This enforces the companies to take necessary noise control actions.

(http://app2.nea.gov.sg/copeco_appendix7.aspx)

b) Erection of noise control structures: In accordance to Building and Construction

Authority (BCA), noise barriers or noise attenuating structures should be erected by the

construction companies along the premises of the construction sites to minimise the noise

level as much as possible. Soundproof materials for machinery are also used to contain

noise at the source. In addition, noise barrier panels and movable noise barriers around

generators and machinery are also used to reduce the noise transmitted

(http://www.bca.gov.sg/awards/ggba/others/ggb_book.pdf)

c) Greater communication between residents and construction companies: Residents are

notified about the construction that is carried out near their living premises. This is done

by sending newsletters to neighbouring residents informing them about the key

milestones of the MRT construction project so as to update them on the progress of the

construction project. Banners containing the builder’s hotline number are also put up near

MRT construction site so as to facilitate communication (for example, complaints and

suggestions by residents) between members of the public and the construction companies.

Such communication channels aid in relieving the stress experienced by the nearby

residents. (http://www.bca.gov.sg/awards/ggba/others/ggb_book.pdf)

d) Light construction at night: Construction companies are also allowed to carry out quiet

construction works such as paintings and cleaning up of areas at night.

e) Practice of construction methods and alternative construction machines that reduce

noise and vibration: LTA and BCA encourage MRT construction companies to utilise

machines and methods that reduce the noise construction such as non-percussive piling

methods, low noise generators, and robotic crushers. Low-noise equipment such as the

state of the art technology cutter machine generates less noise as compared to

conventional ones. Silent jack in piles greatly reduce the noise and vibration generated

during the jacking processes. Correct choice of pilling system also helps to mitigate the

noise transmitted to the nearby residents. Equipment is also regularly maintained to

reduce the noise generated while workers are trained to handle them effectively such that

noise generated is minimised. Such practices of construction methods and usage of

innovative equipment ultimately help to reduce the seismic vibration as well as noise

pollution to the surrounding area.(

http://www.bca.gov.sg/awards/ggba/others/ggb_book.pdf)

Advantages of the Creative Middle Way

a) Noise arising from the Mass Rapid Transport (MRT) construction site is an inevitable

situation. Yet, this does not itself warrant the elimination of MRT as an integrated

transportation line provide long term benefits in terms of traveling efficiency. The above

solutions thus seek to take care of the residents’ rights for a comfortable living

environment while minimising the hindrance to the progress of the MRT construction.

b) By adhering closely to regulation guidelines such as setting up noise barriers and

constantly inspecting the noise level, construction engineering firms are carrying out their

duty of minimising the discomfort of the nearby residents. Such measures fulfill the duty

ethics of the construction engineering firms while respecting the nearby residents’ rights.

In some rare instances, it may enhance the corporate image of the construction companies

in terms of social responsibility.

Disadvantages of the Creative Middle Way

a) The approach does not completely eliminate the construction noise and as such, there

is a definite compromise of the living standards of the nearby residents. This is evident in

the complaints received by the NEA despite measures taken

(http://app.lta.gov.sg/forum_replies.asp). This is due to the fact that the complete

elimination of construction noise is technically and feasibly impossible, judging from the

current acoustic engineering control technology.

b) The regulation guidelines on the noise level may not cater to every group of the public

as the noise level is normally decided based on the tolerance level of a majority of

individuals and assumptions that any normal human being can tolerate such noise limit.

In other words, the noise control limit is rather subjective.

(http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/noise/construction_noise/special_report/

hcn04.cfm ) Specific groups of people such as the elderly or those working individuals

who are working night shifts may be affected. Highly stressed individuals may also find

the lowest level of noise limit irritable.

3. Bioengineering: Consumption of Genetically Engineered (GE) food

From the point of view of Rights Ethics:

Currently, the effects of GE food on human health are not deeply explored. There is a

growing concern from opponents of GE food that introducing foreign genes into food

plants may have an unexpected and negative impact on human health.

(http://www.csa.com/discoveryguides/gmfood/overview.php). As such, some consumers

may be concerned about the effect of GE food. The consumers’ rights to safe food

consumption and the knowledge that they may be consuming GE food are violated if GE

food enters the consumer market without their knowledge.

From the point of view of Act Utilitarian:

The world population has topped 6 billion and it is predicted to double in the next 50

years. Ensuring an adequate food supply is thus a critical challenge. GE food promises

the advantages of pest resistance, disease resistance, cold tolerance and high productivity

that can reduce or overcome the problem of food shortage in the near future. In general,

this is beneficial for the growing world population that requires a more consistent food

supply.

Creative middle way:

Complete elimination of the production and consumption of GE food would derive the

world a possible solution towards global food shortage but it is still important to consider

the effects of GE food on the population, especially when the studies on GE food are not

established well enough currently. As such, there are creative middle ways currently

attempted to resolve the two conflicting views on GE food.

a) Informing the public about the presence of GE food: This would raise the awareness of

the consumers about the presence of GE food and thus, leaving it to their own discretion

with regards to the consumption of GE food. A Bill known as the H.R.3553 - Genetically

Engineered Food Right to Know Act is introduced to raise such awareness (from:

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h110-6636). Foods that contain

genetically engineered material or are produced with genetically engineered material

must bear this label:

GENETICALLY ENGINEERED

followed by this subtext:

UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT NOTICE: THIS PRODUCT CONTAINS

GENETICALLY ENGINEERED MATERIAL, OR WAS PRODUCED WITH A

GENETICALLY ENGINEERED MATERIAL.

b) Educating the general public about the truths of GE food from the point of view of

science: The general public is educated and informed about the details of the effect of

consuming specific GE food on health. This helps to clear up the gross misunderstanding

of GE food. This also at least ensures an adequate protection to the companies producing

GE food from the presumed baseless fear of the public about GE food. This step is a

manifestation of act utilitarian spirit as it benefits the public with the disclosed

information and the companies by clarifying the misleading information of their products.

For example, Bayer CropScience, a major GM food company introduces various

scientific courses to educate the consumers about scientific contexts and arguments. Such

courses are aimed towards developing decision-making skills and to form factual

opinions on current topics such as the use of crop protection products and the benefits of

biotechnology, and hence educating the consumers about the factual details of consuming

GE food.

(http://www.bayercropscience.com/bcsweb/cropprotection.nsf/id/

EN_Science_Education_for_young_people)

c) Regulating the production of GE food

While the exact effects of GE food are not well established in research, the production of

GE food are still subjected to strict control - at least to the current safety food production

standards - such that they are made safe for consumption. For example, FDA uses its

authorities under the FFDCA to ensure that food products derived through rDNA

technology are still safe for consumption purposes.

(

http://www.pewtrusts.org/uploadedFiles/wwwpewtrustsorg/Reports/Food_and_Biotechno

logy/hhs_biotech_0901.pdf) Bayer CropScience also upholds food production safety.

Before any product reaches market maturity, it is subjected to a stringent registration

process to determine whether it is safe for people, animals and the environment

(

http://www.bayercropscience.com/bcsweb/cropprotection.nsf/id/EN_Product_Stewardshi

p_2010)

Advantages of the Creative Middle Way

a) One of the fundamental rights of consumers is the knowledge of their products

(http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=9108#axzz1oajfIQej). Because of the current

unknown effects of GE food, it is important to inform the public about the presence of

GE food such that they will be able to make well-informed and intelligent product

choices. The H.R.3553 bill protects the consumers’ right to know by requiring producers

and manufacturers to label all foods that contain or are produced with genetically

engineered material. This is the duty of the scientist in providing the public with the

information to make their decision for consumption of GE food.

b) Another basic rights of consumers is that they are entitled to variety of food product

options (http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=9108#axzz1oajfIQej) and these

include the GE food products. The complete elimination of GE food based on the

insufficient establishment that GE food will present harmful effects on humans will limit

the choices of the consumers, especially to those who are proponents of GE food. By

providing labels to identify GE food, the consumers’ right to variety of choices are still

secured as they are entitled to the purchase of additional food choices, which in this case

are the GE food products. Note that the purchase of the GE food is still left to the

discretion of the consumers.

c) The information and education provided by the companies clarifies the doubts about

the effects of consuming GE food the public have. Ultimately, the decision of the

consumption of GE food will still lie in the hands of the consumers but in this case,

consumers are making a more informed decision.

d) In addition to protect the rights of the public, the companies are also given the chance

to protect their interest, which is to make profit. The education of the public about the

technicalities of the GE food may help to dispel the extreme negative myths about GE

food. This helps to protect the interests of the companies at least to a moderate extent as

some consumers may reject the notion of GE food without giving secondary

consideration.

e) The regulation also ensures the production of the GE food is closely adhered such that

it is safe for consumption, at least to the current safety standards. This ensures the

consumers’ rights to safe food consumption.

Disadvantages of the Creative Middle Way

a) The long term effect on human bodies are not known due to the length of human

lifespan and the fact that GE food is still relatively new. As such, the current safety

standards used in the regulation of the safety of GE food and the labeling of the GE food

may not be sufficient to fully protect the consumers who are willing to consume GE

food. 

b) Labeling of GE food may not be effective in some countries with lax supervision in the

field of Genetic Engineering. For example, bribery of the government officials by

companies producing GE food may occur to remove GE label. This will cause the

consumers to lose their right for awareness that those foods they consumed are GE food.

c) The education of the GE food may be subjected to abuse from both the opponents and

proponents of GE food.  For example, the process of educating the general public may be

abused by the companies producing GE food as they might undermine the severity of the

negative health impact caused by the GE food while exaggerating the advantages of their

products - in other words, information may be subjected to manipulation if left

unregulated. This may result in the violation of public rights.

5. Engineering ethical dilemmas that exist in the use of the robotics for various

purposes in our society and the proposed creative middle ways.

Engineering Ethical Dilemma 1: Manufacturing Robotics

From the point of view of Act Utilitarian:

Automation manufacturing technology such as manufacturing robots increased

productivity which translates to higher throughput, reduced lead time and higher profits.

The improved product quality resulting from the usage of robotics manufacturing

technology also greatly entices factory managers to gradually replace manual labour

work with manufacturing robots (http://www.robots.com/faq/137/what-are-the-

advantages-of-an-industrial-manufacturing-robot).

From the point of view of Rights Ethics:

Although the replacement has lead to an improvement in production efficiency, current

workers would lose their jobs, which infringes on their rights to a sustainable living hood.

(from: http://books.google.com.sg/books?id=oBb-

lt3l4oYC&pg=PA20&lpg=PA20&dq=manufacturing+robots+replace+human+ethics&so

urce=bl&ots=ytdMs3zX3k&sig=TrMi0gSoYrLCkx7OK6g4Xv_BaUI&hl=en&sa=X&ei

=VV1lT9vmI9DnrAfykJn2Dg&ved=0CFIQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=manufacturing

%20robots%20replace%20human%20ethics&f=false) It is inevitable that human labours

are gradually phased out in the manufacturing sectors through automation. An example is

the electronic parts manufacturer Foxconn that is planning to replace its workforce with

approximately 1 million robots in favour of higher productivity (from:

http://www.zdnetasia.com/robot-army-to-lead-manufacturing-revolution-62301675.htm)

Proposed Creative Middle Ways

http://books.google.com.sg/books?id=oBb-

lt3l4oYC&pg=PA20&lpg=PA20&dq=manufacturing+robots+replace+human+ethics&so

urce=bl&ots=ytdMs3zX3k&sig=TrMi0gSoYrLCkx7OK6g4Xv_BaUI&hl=en&sa=X&ei

=VV1lT9vmI9DnrAfykJn2Dg&ved=0CFIQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=manufacturing

%20robots%20replace%20human%20ethics&f=false

a. As a short-term solution, robots may be introduced only in new plants rather than

replacing humans in existing assembly lines. In the long run, plants that are still operating

on manual labour will gradually be phased out due to its lower productivity edge should

they not be automatised along with their competitors. Hence, managers should start

finding a sustainable and optimum point of production that utilises both robots and

manual labour as a long-term creative middle way.

b. Finding the optimum point whereby the productivity is sustained without substituting

the entire production with robots as a long term and viable solution: For example,

workers should be included in the planning for new factories or the introduction of robots

into existing plants, so they can participate in the process. It may be that robots are

needed to reduce manufacturing costs so that the company remains competitive, but

labour and management should do planning for such cost reductions jointly. Another

possibility is that robots can be acting as a complement for humans rather as a

replacement as humans have greater cognitive abilities than robots in certain aspects and

unforeseen situations. This is due to the fact that robots are preprogrammed for expected

situations. Such complement of ability can be realised through human-robot

collaboration, which is exemplified in a system developed by Peshkin and Colgate at

Northernwestern University in the late 1990s. The cooperative robots were termed

cobots. Basically, cobots and humans may jointly grasp an object to be moved, but the

motive power is provided entirely by the human and decisions are still made by the

humans. The cobots provide guidance and may prevent motion in certain directions, thus

ensuring accuracy when assembling parts. As such, human-robot collaboration is possible

and hence, production achieved through human and robots interaction is a possibility.  

3. Another possible long term creative middle way is retraining current employees for

new positions within the company. Even though there may be individuals who can longer

be employed, it is possible to keep some of the current workforce to perform in other

areas. For example, since robots are particularly good at highly repetitive simple motions,

the replaced human workers may be trained to acquire new skills and moved to positions

where judgment and decisions beyond the abilities of robots are required. They may also

be trained to be involved in the repair and maintenance of the robots or take up

supervision roles in the production process. Thus, such integration of robot and human

can enhance the productivity and efficiency of a manufacturing line in the long run

without completely omitting human beings from the production process.

Evaluation of proposed creative middle way:

The above suggested creative middle ways involve certain degree of compromise from

both parties - the business managers and the current workforce in general. They do not

guarantee the complete saving of the jobs of the current manual workforce and neither do

they ensure the profit that is achievable by complete automation. However, the creative

middle ways suggested do ensure that some jobs are retained both in the short and long

terms, while still allowing the companies to enjoy the higher productivity to a certain

extent through the implementation of robots.

Engineering Ethical Dilemma 2: UAV Aircraft Engineers Ethical dilemma

From the point of view of Act Utilitarian:

Aircraft engineers are the ones who manufacture and design Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

(UAV) which are used widely by the US Military in military operations. From the

defense perspective, the usage of UAVs can increase the overall battle advantage, for

example - threats to human pilot’s life can be prevented when a UAV operation is

conducted as opposed to an operation involving a real pilot with their fighter jet. The

usage of UAVS also provides greater battle awareness for other branches of the military.

From the point of view of Rights Ethics:

The armed force aircraft engineers are tasked to fulfill their professional aspects of

increasing the warfare efficiency of their armed forces. However, collateral damages in

war are inevitable due to the nature of weapons and human errors involved in the warfare.

The usage of UAVs that are armed with deadly payloads such as the Hellfire missiles to

target enemy assets and individuals can lead to deadly collateral damages. Several reports

have revealed a 1:50 casualties rate (for each targeted individual, there are 50 collateral

casualties, not to speak of loss of property) (

http://www.opendemocracy.net/opensecurity/federico-sperotto/illegal-and-ineffective-

drone-strikes-and-targetted-killing-in-war-on).

As such, the engineers’ actions of manufacturing, designing and maintaining certain

weapon systems such as the UAVs may infringe on the neutral civilians’ rights

(http://socialistmenace.org/2011/04/16/predator-drone-attacks-kill/

http://www.islamist.com/index.php?

option=com_content&view=article&id=1354&group=LA)

Proposed Creative Middle Ways:

The usage of armed UAV greatly increases the battle advantages of the military.

However, the possible collateral damages resulting from the usage of armed UAV

infringe on the innocent civilians’ rights. The proposed creative middle ways aim to

achieve a compromise between these two ethical issues.

a) Focus should be placed on designing and utilising UAVs that are unarmed. Such

UAVs should be used mainly for surveillance purposes, which still help to maintain the

battle awareness of the armed forces. UAVs should presently be limited to surveillance

purposes until a more accurate and precise targeting system is created and deemed safe

for carrying and firing deadly payload.

b) If armed UAVs are required for strike operations, the operation of the armed UAVs

should be tightly controlled with detailed operational guidelines and constant and tight

supervision from high authority. A significant number of civilians are innocently harmed

by collateral damage resulting from UAV strike missions. Based on the report released by

the Pakistani authority, it was estimated that 700 innocent lives have been killed in the

process of UAVs strike missions in 2009. (from:

http://pakistanbodycount.org/drone_attack) Such figures emphasize that measures should

be put in place to ensure that the operations of armed UAVs - should they be necessary -

be tightly controlled. For example, a strict operation guidelines that ensure that the

process of tracking down enemy and verifying enemy’s identity is correctly done to

minimise target error.

c) If armed UAVs are required for strike operations, the UAVs can be armed with

weapon systems that possess lower chances of collateral damages. Such weapon systems

such as the GBU-39B Focused Lethality Munitions basically focuses concentrated zone

of destruction just a few meters across, with little damage outside that particular radius.

Another example of a possible weapon system is the LCDB. The LCDB was first used in

Iraq in 2007. In one instance, it was used against insurgents transferring weapons

between a sedan and a van—the U.S. struck the sedan with an LCDB, and the van with a

Maverick missile. In both cases the damage was confined to the target. It can be used

with a precision guidance system, either laser- or GPS-based.  (From:

http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/military/planes-uavs/5-weapons-systems-

to-reduce-collateral-damage#slide-1). Usage of such system would help to reduce the

possibility of collateral damages that result from the current usage of heavily destructive

payloads carried by the UAVs, primarily the Hellfire missiles. However, it should be

noted that the reduced collateral damages resulting from the usage of such weapon

systems can only be achieved if the targets are correctly identified first.

d) A more drastic approach would be to confine the usage of armed UAVs in areas where

the possibility of large number of civilian dwellers is low. This would greatly reduce the

possibility of civilian collateral damages. This however may not be very viable due to the

fact that most military operations involve urban operations that are occurring in civilian

populated areas.

Evaluation of proposed creative middle way:

The measures mentioned are intended to reduce as many unintended casualties caused by

UAVs as much as possible. Yet it is important to note that collateral damage cannot be

eliminated completely in a combat war zone through any possible means, as mentioned

by defense analyst John Pike, director of GlobalSecurity.org. Hence, innocent civilian

lives are always involved. These creative middle ways however, provide the military with

the additional edge they require by engineering a UAV without disregarding the rights of

the innocent civilians to live safely. Thus, they can ensure that the engineers design the

UAVs with the aim of the national defense while minimising the moral dilemma of

designing and maintaining such deadly weapon systems.

Engineering Ethical Dilemma 3: Care Robots Ethical Dilemma

From the point of view of Act Utilitarian:

Countries such as Singapore and Japan are facing the serious issue of an ageing

population that require more caretakers who are willing to put in their time and effort to

take care of the elderly. For example in Singapore, it is estimated that by 2050, two in 10

persons will be aged 60 years or above (from:

http://www.greaterthan60.com/

articles_an_ageing_population_calls_for_restructure_of_healthcare_system.html).

However, in these countries, there is a shortage of manpower and the lack of interest in

the care industry. Currently in Singapore, step down care is largely

provided by voluntary welfare organisations.

(from:

http://www.greaterthan60.com/articles_an_ageing_population_calls_for_restructure_of_h

ealthcare_system.html). Many of these elderly would sooner or later require chronic care,

placing increased demands on the already stretched medical industry (from:

http://www.intouchhealth.com/Kinetic_Consulting_Oct.pdf) The proposal of using care

robots can help to elevate the stress on the medical industry as well as the workforce

supporting the ageing population as such robots are efficient in performing manual tasks.

From the point of view of Rights Ethics:

While care robots are able to resolve the issue of the lack of caretakers in the future and

reduce the stress on the current workforce supporting the ageing population, there have

been many opponents towards the usage of care robots from an ethical point of view.

Firstly, the elderly would be devoid of the human touch that they needed if caretakers are

substituted by emotionless robots that are programmed to only carry out a particular

caretaker’s works. Secondly, it has been argued that robots can never replace the

decision-making ability of a human caretaker to respond appropriately to different

situations, as these robots are pre-programmed to perform specific tasks. Current

technology only allows the robots to force a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ decision which is insufficient as

such situations may infringe on the rights of the elderly whose needs may not be properly

understood by the care robots. For instance, there may be situations whereby robots are

used to programmed for feeding medication to the patients. However, if the patient

refuses, the robot will still insist on administering the drugs to the patients due to the task

that is pre-programmed to it, and this may turn out to be harmful for the patient.

(http://www-cs-faculty.stanford.edu/~eroberts/cs181/projects/2010-11/

ComputersMakingDecisions/robotic-nurses/index.html)

Proposed creative middle way:

a. Instead of directly replacing the duties of the care workers, the care robots should be

working together with the nurses. Care robots can assist them in mundane jobs like

delivering medication from one area to another or jobs that are physically demanding like

carrying the patients. For example, the CareBot™ MSR can act as a fully functional, cost

effective robot assistant to medical personnel. It can carry onboard third party sensors for

monitoring blood pressure, pulse, oxygen, etc.   It is able to follow medical personnel

while responding to commands. This is to ensure that the elderly are able to slowly get

used to the robots and in subsequent years, the amount of nurses needed may be reduced

as the elderly are used to their presence. An additional approach is to use the robots

during late hours completely when most elderly are not awake.

b. Robots can also be designed to have a higher degree of ‘human touch’ to increase the

patient's acceptance. The care robots could be developed to comprehend, learn and apply

human interaction progressively, such that the loss of ‘human touch’ can be minimised.

For example, Clinical Research Fellow and Specialist Registrar Parv Sains is working

with Professor Sir Ara Darzi at Imperial College to work with the In Touch Health’s

RP(remote presence) 6 robot or the RP6. The RP6, which resembles a large vacuum

cleaner base carrying a monitor and a camera, is able to mimic the head movements of

humans in conversation, helping make face-to-face monitor contact with the patient more

intuitive. There has also been development to implement a two-way audiovisuals that

allow the elderly and robot to interact as if in a normal human interaction (from:

http://www.intouchhealth.com/Kinetic_Consulting_Oct.pdf).

c. Another way to improve the ‘human touch’ is by incorporating features into the care

robots that include companion roles - one that provides entertainment, interactions, and

connections to friends and family using touch screen interface and Internet connection

features. (from: http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/02/how-robots-can-help-

caregivers/252881/) For instance, sophisticated software and features that allow robots to

mimic human interaction can be incorporated into these robots to not only carry out

human level interactions, but also mimic human responses in situations where yes-or-no

forced actions are not desirable for the elderly. An example of such a viable feature

would be the SIRI. Features such as SIRI act as an intelligent personal assistant that

functions more than just a traditional voice recognition software that responds to simple

commands and words. SIRI is designed to be able to understand natural speech and

progressively learn to understand and apply appropriate human response each time it is

asked. Similar features like that of SIRI could be further developed and incorporated into

future care robots to provide even more human touch.

Evaluation of proposed creative middle way:

The aforementioned creative middle ways are aimed to seek a compromise between the

two justified conflicting ethical standpoints - one of which is the use of care robots to

alleviate the issue resulting from an ageing population in the countries lacking in

caretakers while the infringement of rights of the elderly should the caretakers be

replaced by the care robots. While it is possible for care robots to be used in the care

taking industry, the creative middle way solutions may require a period of time to take

effect as such human recognition technology that mimics human level interaction is still

at its developing stage. Yet, the solutions proposed are still very much viable for raising

human level interaction of the care robots.