Roland Schinzinger, 77; Professor Wrote of Ethics in Engineering
Roland Schinzinger, 77, a UC Irvine professor emeritus of electrical engineering and computer science and coauthor of a book on ethical issues in engineering, died of a heart attack Jan. 25 at his home in Irvine.
One of its first three members, Schinzinger was on the faculty at the UC Irvine School of Engineering from 1966 until his retirement in 1992.
The widely published educator co-wrote the 1983 book “Ethics in Engineering,” which dealt with such issues as whistle-blowing, conflicts of interest, legal responsibility and weapons development.
A longtime advocate of environmental and social causes, Schinzinger was a founder of Irvine Tomorrow, a citizens political organization. As a member of the city Planning Commission, he was instrumental in establishing bicycle trails and planning energy-efficient housing.
Born and raised in Japan, where his German father was a teacher, Schinzinger moved to the United States in 1949.
He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering from UC Berkeley and completed the final year of his doctoral requirements at the new UC Irvine campus, where, in 1966, he received the first doctorate awarded at the university.
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