BRAZILIAN mechanic-turned-inventor Alfredo Moser has inspired Malmesbury School student Abigail Morgan to win a coveted £36,000 scholarship from Malmesbury engineering firm Dyson.

The 17-year-old wants to follow in her grandfather’s footsteps by becoming a civil engineer as well as break into what is traditionally a male dominated profession.

She was one of 17 Malmesbury School A-level students who applied for the annual James Dyson Foundation scholarship to help them through university.

Each of the students, whose aspirations range from science and technology to engineering and product design, were asked to explain what inspired them about the degree they had chosen, as well as writing 300 words about their favourite invention.

As campany founder Sir James Dyson put it: “Abigail’s favourite invention was an unusual choice – Alfredo Moser’s zero electricity light, which uses the natural phenomenon of refraction to provide illumination.

“It’s clear Abigail has a real interest in engineering and the problems it can solve, and I’m sure she will become an excellent engineer.”

Abigail has applied to study civil engineering at several top UK universities. The scholarship will now pay for her annual tuition fees for up to four years – the length of a typical engineering degree.

Abigail, who was thrilled to win the scholarship, said: “My granddad was a civil engineer, and I was always interested in his work.

“I loved the idea of being able to understand the physical and human aspects of what made an engineering project work.

“The James Dyson Foundation scholarship will let me pursue my ambition of becoming a civil engineer myself – without the distraction of financial worries.”

Britain will need an extra 640,000 engineers by 2020 but is currently only producing 60,000 engineering graduates a year – a shortfall of 340,000.

The problem is exacerbated by failure to engage girls in engineering: only six per cent of the engineering workforce is female.

The Malmesbury School scholarship is part of the James Dyson Foundation’s work to support young, local people in becoming engineers.