Education: Engineers with a difference: University students learn to deal with issues and problems that arise from the interaction of technology and society

A new type of hybrid engineer — part engineer, part social analyst — is emerging in increasing numbers from technical universities in the United States. These engineers are trained in specially designed programs to deal with issues and problems that arise from the interaction between technology and society. Such programs were developed because academia recognized that many modern sociotechnological problems — technology and the environment, say, or technology and public safety — require specialists to solve them. The training of these specialists blends traditional engineering disciplines with an awareness of the effects of engineering on society.