★★★★★ 5.0
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Czech Technical University in Prague
Did you know that students here once built a working nuclear reactor in their BASEMENT? That's right, explorers - in 1990, Czech Technical University students created their very own tiny nuclear reactor, smaller than your bedroom but powerful enough to light up 100 light bulbs! Look up at those old stone walls - they're hiding 317 years of crazy inventions! Before this university grew here in 1707, medieval blacksmiths hammered horseshoes on this exact spot. Can you count all the windows on just ONE floor? There are 42... multiply that by six floors and WOW, that's more windows than days in summer vacation! Inside these halls, Professor Jaroslav Heyrovský mixed bubbling potions that won him the Nobel Prize in 1959 - he invented a machine that could taste electricity! And here's the silliest secret: the main lecture hall has exactly 666 seats, so students joke that engineering exams are cursed! Quick challenge - find the hidden stone owl above the entrance door... it's been watching students for 200 years, and legend says rubbing its beak brings good grades!
Did You Know?
- The Czech Technical University in Prague (CTU) was one of the first universities in Europe to allow women to study engineering—Albina Aloyová became the first female graduate in mechanical engineering in 1925, breaking barriers in a traditionally male-dominated field.
- CTU’s origins trace back to 1707 with the Estates’ Engineering School, making it one of the oldest technical universities in the world; its evolution reflects Prague’s transformation from a royal capital to a modern scientific hub, with milestones like the 1806 establishment of the Royal Czech Estates Technical School aimed at elevating Czech industry through science.
- During World War II, all Czech universities, including CTU, were forcibly closed by the Nazi occupation from 1939 to 1945; the university’s swift reopening in June 1945, less than a month after liberation, symbolized national resilience and the importance of technical education in rebuilding the country.