CITY UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG

Course code & title : EE3012 Engineers in Society

Session : Semester A 2020/21

Time allowed : 2 hours and 15 minutes

(inclusive of 15 minutes for uploading)

• This paper has FOUR pages (including this cover page).

• The questions are not to be taken away after the exam.

Instructions:

Please make sure you follow all instructions from the University, ARRO, and EE.
Please note the following:

1. This paper consists of 6 questions. Answer ANY 4 questions. All questions carry
equal marks. The total score is 100.
2. This is an open-book exam. Students can read the lecture notes and/or other
materials available online.
3. You are responsible for receiving the questions on Canvas (under the
“Assignment → Final Examination” menu of the EE3012 Course), hand-write all
answers on blank answer sheets, compile the answers into a single PDF file, and
upload the file, via Canvas in the same “Assignment → Final Examination”
menu, before the deadline of the exam.
4. The paper will be available at 9:30am as scheduled, and your answer file (pdf
file) must be uploaded before 11:45am on the same day.
5. Stay on Zoom after the deadline until the examiner allows you to leave Zoom.

Answering this exam paper implies your acknowledgment of the Pledge for following
the Rules on Academic Honesty:

“I pledge that the answers in this examination are my own and that I will not seek or obtain an
unfair advantage in producing these answers. Specifically,

1. I will not plagiarize (copy without citation) from any source;

2. I will not communicate or attempt to communicate with any other person during the
examination; neither will I give or attempt to give assistance to another student taking the
examination; and
3. I will use only approved devices (e.g., calculators) and/or approved device models.
4. I understand that any act of academic dishonesty can lead to disciplinary action.”
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On the first page of your answer sheets, copy the following sentence and sign it:
I pledge to follow the Rules on Academic Honesty and understand that violations may
lead to severe penalties.
(Signature)___________________(Date) _______________________

Contact Information
• Should you have any technical problem during the exam, contact your course leader
or invigilator via Zoom private chat, email: chitse@cityu.edu.hk or by phone call at
3442 2619.
• If you are not able to contact course leader/invigilator, you can reach the department
via:
(a) Departmental hotline at (+852) 3442-7740
(b) Department Whatsapp phone: 9269-4066
(c) Department WeChat ID: wxid_lly7yf5fzoj722 or scan the following QR Code
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Question 1 (25%)

Engineering is often considered as an essential bridge connecting science and society’s needs.
Engineers are thus always dealing with real-world applications. In the real world, a host of
considerations and constraints interact to define how scientific principles and technologies
are deployed to develop practical systems that address the needs of society.

Discuss the major considerations and constraints, including innovative ideas, available
technologies, design elements (ease of use, aestheticity, etc.), cost and market consideration,
and how they contribute to successful development of services and products. Use examples to
illustrate your points.

Question 2 (25%)

Intellectual property is a concept adopted by developed society to fairly exploit the fruits of
people’s creations and to maintain people’s incentive for continuation of useful creations to
improve the livelihood of people. As a kind of property, intellectual property can be owned,
purchased and sold. One important form of intellectual property is “patent” which allows the
owner to protect an invention by excluding others from using the invention.

Discuss in detail the merits in the use of intellectual property for encouraging creativity as
well as the shortcomings that may be brought by the handling of intellectual property in the
real world. Your discussion may include, inter alia, the acquisition of intellectual property,
expected protection for its owner (usually the company who employs the inventor), benefits
or harms to the inventor, impact to society (developed and developing), and dissemination of
useful ideas. Provide an example of intellectual property dispute that would illustrate some of
the issues that you have discussed.

Question 3 (25%)

(i) The Prevention of Bribery Ordinance in Hong Kong explicitly makes the act of
gaining advantage by an agent without approval by the agent’s principal a criminal
offence. This is the so-called “four A” principle in interpreting a corruption case.

Elaborate on this “4 A” principle by explaining each “A” in the context of a business

transaction related to an engineering project that involves an engineer or engineering
manager. Provide an example for illustration.

(ii) “Conflict of interest” is a subtle issue that, if not handled properly, may lead to serious
consequence. Discuss with illustrative examples how an engineer or manager can
avoid being perceived having a conflict of interest in handling matters related to
human resources (e.g., recruitment and promotion), purchasing and tendering, and
performance assessment of systems or people. You should not confuse a “conflict of
interest” situation with an actual corruption case.
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Question 4 (25%)

First introduced in 2010 by a German government’s project in promoting computerised

manufacturing and further promoted in the 2015 World Economic Forum in San Francisco,
USA, Industry 4.0 is the ongoing upgrade of industrial practices, using modern smart
technology, including machine-to-machine communication (M2M) and the Internet of
Things (IoT), for enhancing productivity and reducing human intervention.

What would be the likely impact of the increasing deployment of communication

technologies and data (or big data) analytics on industrial automation, and what are the
challenges and opportunities for engineers and technology developers in the light of enhanced
connectivity and increased amount of available information? Try addressing this question
from multiple angles such as the quality (and nature) of future services and products,
manpower demand, length of product cycles, data privacy, and consideration of societal
impact.

Question 5 (25%)

Sustainability has been a major issue being considered by technology developers and
policymakers in the past two decades in view of the rapid development of industry that
depletes our resources and damage our environment (e.g., pollution, possible climate change)
at a rate that would pose serious long-term consequence affecting generations to come.

Discuss how electrical engineers may help in making the development of society more
sustainable, despite the increasing trends in energy consumption and the demand for better
functionality causing inevitable growth in the amount of waste and pollution. Your discussion
may consider our role as electrical engineers in contributing to the saving of energy,
improving the environment, and reducing waste.

Question 6 (25%)

The Novel Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted our life in many
ways. Since the outbreak began in December 2019, medical sectors around the world have
faced severe levels of stress due to the huge additional demand in manpower and medical
resources in order to combat the rapid progression of the pandemic. Many countries have
begun resorting to the use of technologies in various aspects that may help relieve or control
the spread of the virus.

Discuss, from an electrical engineer’s perspective, how the use of technologies can play
crucial roles in providing active intervention to bring the pandemic under control as well as to
reduce the negative impact of the pandemic to people’s life. Provide examples to illustrate
how electrical engineers (including software and hardware engineers) can contribute to the
control and relief of COVID-19 pandemic in the short term and a better disease control
infrastructure that will benefit our society in the long run.

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