Problems, Solutions, and

Opportunities

What do you want to do

when you grow up?

What kinds of problems do

you want to solve?

Important Problems facing the World’s Population

Group Work - 5 Min

Identify at least 5 major problems/challenges, facing people in the world today

Some resources:

● https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-development-goals/

● https://80000hours.org/problem-profiles/

● https://www.businessinsider.com/world-economic-forum-world-biggest-

problems-concerning-millennials-2016-8

● http://datatopics.worldbank.org/world-development-

indicators/themes/environment.html#featured-indicators_1

About 1 billion people lack access to electricity

3 billion lack access to clean cooking fuels

http://gamapserver.who.int/mapLibrary/Files/Maps/Global_hap_deaths_2016.png

800 million undernourished

About 2.1 billion people lack access to safe drinking water

About 2.3 billion people lack adequate sanitation

Engineering Grand Challenges

● Make solar energy economical

● Provide energy from fusion

● Develop carbon sequestration

methods

● Manage the nitrogen cycle

● Provide access to clean water

● Restore and improve urban

infrastructure

● Advance health informatics

● Engineer better medicines

● Reverse-engineer the brain

● Prevent nuclear terror

● Secure cyberspace

● Enhance virtual reality

● Advance personalized learning

● Engineer the tools of scientific

discovery

http://www.engineeringchallenges.org/challenges.aspx

“Engineers must frame their work with the ultimate goal of

universal accessibility in mind”

Engineering Grand Challenges

Which challenges address world’s problems?

Which challenges should have been listed with important

world problems

Which world problems are not expressed by engineering

challenges.

Concept Map: Food Insecurity

Pick a engineering grand

challenge; Create a concept

map.

● What is the root of the problem?

● What kinds of additional problems

does it lead to?

● What are some attempted

solutions?

● What injustice does it lead to?

● What is impact on society if

challenge is overcome?

Practice of Engineering

What are major employers of engineers?

What are major employers of Rowan grads.?

Top US/European Engineering Firms

GE Energy

Siemens AG

Bosch Corporation

Honeywell International Inc

Top Rowan Employers

Practice of Engineering

To what extent do these employers address world challenges?

How can an engineer pursue engineering for social good?

Post Graduate Pathways

https://ptgmedia.pearsoncmg.com/images/9780789755988/samplepages/9780789755988.pdf

https://www.technik-consulting.eu/en/analysis/stable_drone.html

https://www.robotshop.com/community/tutorials/show/how-to-make-a-drone-uav-lesson-2-the-

frame

Medicine’s greater purpose is human health; the law’s greater purpose is justice; nothing similar exists for

engineers. Because of this lack of a greater purpose, the authors argue that engineers frequently behave in

morally disengaged ways.