INDE 410: Engineering Ethics
1.2 Case Study: The Sinking Ship
Read the following case and then address the questions below. There is no need to submit
anything but you need to be ready to answer any of the questions in class on Wednesday. So it is
highly advised that you take written notes of your answers.
You are the captain of a sinking ship and you need to evacuate immediately. Unfortunately, you
are 12 aboard the ship and the lifeboat only fits 11 people. You cannot keep yourself off the
lifeboat as that would mean sure death for everyone. You have to pick one person to keep off the
lifeboat. The following is your passenger list:
1. Who would you keep off the lifeboat?
2. Why did you vote for who you did? Express your answer in terms of values, virtues, or
norms
3. Are there any similarities between this question and the trolley dilemma or Baby
Theresa?
4. This is a contrived example that you are unlikely to face in real life (I hope!). Can you
think of a real-life example of something you might encounter as an engineer that will
force you into a similar type of decision?