The impact of commercial computer software on undergraduate engineering education

Personal computers running with Intel 80286, 80386, 80486 and Pentium microprocessors, and those based on the Motorola 68000 line of microprocessors enjoy the lion´s share of the home computer market. These are respectively IBM and compatible PCs, and the Apple computers. The dominance of these PCs in homes and in educational institutions-from as early as kindergarten through high school to college-is a direct result of the falling cost of the microprocessor chips and the competition among PC manufacturers. Commercial computer software packages addressing specific applications are sold by various vendors and are used by undergraduate engineering students, educators and engineers alike, often with no knowledge of the model limitations and the algorithms employed in developing and writing the software. This trend, if unchecked, will naturally produce future engineers and scientists who see computer results as infallible truth, rather than those who should rightly view the results as subject to the limitations of the models employed in building the software. This paper advocates increased computer literacy at the classroom level in the form of getting more involved in software analysis, development and algorithms than is currently practiced. Suggestions are provided to enhance engineering education