<p class="ql-block">Tsinghua University was founded in 1911 on the site of Xichun Garden (which changed to Tsinghua Garden Later), an attached imperial garden of the Old Summer Palace of Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Named as Tsinghua Xuetang and funded with part of the Boxer Indemnity, the school was a preparatory school in western style for students who were sent to study in the United States by the government.</p> <p class="ql-block">Peking University (abbreviation: PKU or colloquially known in Chinese as Beida), is a major research university located in Beijing, and a member of the C9 League. It is the first established modern national university of China. It was founded as the Metropolitan University of Peking in 1898 as a replacement of the ancient Guozijian. By 1920 it had become a center for progressive thought. Today, Peking University is one of the best universities in China. In addition to academics, Peking University is especially renowned for its campus and the beauty of its traditional Chinese architecture.</p> <p class="ql-block">Beijing National Stadium is known as the Bird's Nest The stadium was designed for use throughout the 2008 Summer Olympics and Paralympics.Located at the Olympic Green, the stadium cost US$423 million. The design was awarded to a submission from the Swiss architecture firm Herzog & de Meuron in April 2003 after a bidding process that included 13 final submissions. The design which originated from the study of Chinese ceramics implemented steel beams in order to hide supports for the retractable roof giving the stadium the appearance of a bird's nest. The retractable roof was later removed from the design The construction began on December 24, 2003 and the stadium officially opened on June 28, 2008. A shopping mall and a hotel are planned to be constructed to increase the functions of the stadium, which has had trouble attracting events, games to maintain after the Olympics</p> <p class="ql-block">The Beijing National Aquatics Center is also officially known as the National Aquatics Center and colloquially known as the Water Cube, built alongside Beijing National Stadium in the Olympic Green for the swimming competitions of the 2008 Summer Olympics. Despite its nickname, the building is not an actual cube, but a cuboid (a rectangular box). Ground was broken on December 24, 2003 and the Center was completed and handed over for use on January 28, 2008. Swimmers broke 25 world records at the Water Cube during the 2008 Olympics.In July 2003, the Water Cube design was chosen from 10 proposals in an international architectural competition for the aquatic center project. The Water Cube was specially designed and built by a consortium made up of PTW Architects (an Australian architecture firm), Arup international engineering group, CSCEC (China State Construction Engineering Corporation) and CCDI (China Construction Design International) of Shanghai. The Water Cube's design was initiated by a team effort: the Chinese partners felt a square was more symbolic to Chinese culture and to the Bird's Nest stadium, while the Sydney based partners came up with the idea of covering the “cube” with bubbles, symbolizing water. Contextually the cube symbolizes earth whilst the circle (represented by the stadium) represents heaven.Comprising a steel space frame, it is the largest ETFE clad structure in the world with ETFE pillows of over 100, 000 m2 that are only 0.2 mm thick. The ETFE cladding allows more light and heat penetration than traditional glass, resulting in a 30% decrease in energy costs.The outer wall is based on the Weaire-Phelan structure, a structure devised from the natural pattern of bubbles in soap lather. In the true Weaire-Phelan structure the edge of each cell is curved in order to maintain 109.5 degree angles at each vertex.The facade of the water cube became so popular that there is now a one-to-one copy near the ferry terminal in Macau- the Casino Oceanus by Paul Steelman.</p>