• Question: Was you inspired by another scientist, if so who?

    Asked by anon-255348 to Sophie on 11 Jun 2020.
    • Photo: Sophie Webber

      Sophie Webber answered on 11 Jun 2020:

      Hi Amber! That’s a hard question!

      I actually became an Engineer because I really enjoyed Maths and Science at school, and wanted to make a difference in the world (or design shopping centres)! I grew up in Plymouth and was surrounded by great feats of Engineering such as the Brunel’s Royal Albert Rail Bridge (which crosses the River Tamar between Devon and Cornwall) and Smeaton’s Lighthouse which sits proudly on Plymouth Hoe.

      More recently, I have been inspired by Majd Mashharawi, a female Engineer from Gaza who has invented and designed a concrete block made from rubble and ash from buildings destroyed in the wars in Gaza, which they are using to re-build the properties. She has also design a low-cost solar kit, called SunBox, to help provide electricity to people in Gaza.

      Women in Engineering are still rare (sadly), but female Engineers in places like Gaza are rarer. I think its incredible what she has done, at a very young age, to help re-build Gaza in a sustainable way using her own inventions!

Comments

  • Photo: Beth

    Beth commented on :

    Hi Amber, great question 🙂
    I think I was inspired by a lot of scientists growing up, the most obvious one being David Attenborough. I have always loved nature, but watching his documentaries really opened my eyes to how amazing our planet is, and some of the weird and wonderful things that live on it.
    A number of science teachers and professors also inspired me, particularly a professor I had at university called Charles Sheppard. He taught me for my first ever marine biology lessons and I was amazed by the stories he had to tell and how he had helped to set up the largest marine protected area in the world at that time. I was so inspired by him that I spoke to him after the lecture and was able to do a small research project with him over my summer holidays. It is amazing when these inspirational scientists are able to give people right at the start of their careers experiences and opportunities and that really set me on my career path in marine biology.

  • Photo: Laura

    Laura commented on :

    I was inspired mainly by explorers when I was younger – I wanted to go on adventures to awesome places, be like Shackleton and Scott and go to Antarctica. As I got older, I found out that being a scientist was a good way to explore the world, and help the environment too.
    I am particularly inspired by Mary Anning – she was a palaeontologist, who discovered lots of fossils in Dorset a few hundred years ago. Unfortunately, she wasn’t allowed to join the Geological Society because she was a women! I have a postcard cartoon of her on the noticeboard near my desk!