Washington CSIT meeting draws good response

The newly-formed Washington Area Working Group of CSIT held a get-acquainted dinner meeting on October 29, 1980. Approximately 20 IEEE members came to the Chase II Restaurant in Washington, DC to hear Rosemary Chalk speak on “Ethical Dilemmas in Modern Engineering.” Ms. Chalk said that the pervasive impact of technology on society had made ethics a vital element in the practice of engineering. She discussed the full range of ethics issues — from standards of conduct in the practice of engineering to the relationship between ethical principles and societal values. She suggested some activities by which the Washington CSIT Group could contribute to resolving — or at least understanding — these issues. Ms. Chalk is staff director of the Committee on Scientific Freedom and Responsibility of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Her talk will be published in the March 1981 issue of T&S.