Wanting to help out at home on the farm, Matthew took the Bright Sparks approach to solving the ever-present issue of water leaks!

We had a lot of leaks on our farm and I decided to make the leak detector to make things easier for my mum so that she could locate where the leak is faster and fix it without having to search for it!

It was a challenge making the circuit workd. I had to design it without much help to start with - my Dad has the philosophy that if you are designing something you do it yourself!!! But once I got underway I really enjoyed building the leak detector in the shed with my Dad and working with Mr Hornblow on the circuitry that made the project work.

In my spare time I love riding my motorbike on the farm, bouncing on the trampoline, playing rugby and basketball. Cooking is also a favourite pastime.

I want to either be a pilot or a mechanical engineer, so I'll go wherever I need to, to study. However, my 'dream job' is to be a professional motor cross rider.

I find my Dad pretty inspiring, he's a pretty clever man and loves solving problems and making stuff. He is a pretty cool teacher who comes up with awesome project ideas and he loves supporting his students in the science fair and in the workshop.

In my opinion, the invention that has changed the way we live our lives, more than any other, is the airplane - who would have thought that humans could fly?! It opens up the whole world to us... we can go anywhere or get anything from anywhere.