“UAV use and regulation is a contested policy domain. Currently, it’s a race between public perceptions of threat and the promise of benefits,” Jenkins-Smith explains.
The evolving issues include: societal benefits such as economic development, emergency management and response, and resource management; privacy and domestic threats, such as the fear of government overreach; perceived risks such as falling drones, drones colliding with aircraft, and disruptions of wildlife and lost wilderness; and acceptable/legal responses to perceived threats.
“Public discussion, ethical or not, in all its many modern forms, is a powerful force that needs careful attention, analysis, and response. This matters for the future of drone technology development,” notes Professor Edward Sankowski, a professor of philosophy and associate dean, College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Oklahoma.
More information about Oklahoma and its roughly 1200 aerospace and aviation companies, as well as the UAS graduate degree option (Masters and PhD), contact the Oklahoma Department of Commerce (http://okcommerce.gov/).
UAV image courtesy Shutterstock.
