The purpose of this course is to widen the professional engineer’s understanding of engineering ethics through consideration of seven case studies of the theft of trade secrets by engineers.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office defines a trade secret as information that has three characteristics:
The purpose of this course is to broaden the professional engineer’s understanding of engineering ethics through consideration of seven case studies of the theft of trade secrets by engineers. The studies describe actual cases that have been successfully prosecuted by agencies of the U.S. federal government.
The ethical—rather than legal—aspects of the cases are developed by identifying specific passages in published Standards of Conduct for professional engineers that were violated by the engineers who were found guilty of theft.

Civil Engneering faculty member for 27 years
Dr. Rossow is a graduate of the University of Michigan with B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees. He is a licensed Professional Engineer in the State of Illinois. He taught civil engineering for over 35 years, including six years at Washington University in St. Louis and 29 years at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, where he was the Chair of the Civil Engineering Department for ten years. His areas of expertise are in civil engineering and mechanics. He has consulted for various organizations, including government agencies and an international offshore drilling company. He has published numerous technical journal articles and technical reports for a variety of governmental agencies and private sector organizations. Mark P. Rossow, PE, PhD Licensed Professional Engineer in State of Illinois License No. 062.040560 Dr. Rossow is a graduate of the University of Michigan with B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees. He taught civil engineering for over 35 years, including six years at Washington University in St. Louis and 29 years at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, where he was the Chair of the Civil Engineering Department for ten years. His areas of expertise are in civil engineering and mechanics. He has consulted for various organizations, including government agencies and an international offshore drilling company. He has published many journal articles and technical reports.