On the evening of 9 November 2023, from 19:00 to 21:00, Du Yanliang, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, College of Civil and Transportation Engineering, gave a special report on the topic of "Super Engineering - China's High Speed Railway" in the No.1 Lecture Hall of Huixing Building, and Yang Lei, vice president of the College, Zhou Haijun, head of the Department of Civil Engineering, representatives of the young faculty members, and all the more than 200 2023 new students attended and listened to the report, the lecture was hosted by Vice President Yang Lei.

Academician Du Yanliang's lecture was divided into three parts: the development history of China's railway traffic, the development history and achievements of high-speed railway, and the development trend and outlook of high-speed railway. He comprehensively and deeply analysed the current situation of China's railways, highlighted the achievements of China's railways and the outlook for future development, and combined the new challenges and opportunities facing the construction of China's major railway projects to develop a unique exposition.

Railway is the main artery of national economy, key infrastructure and major livelihood projects, and is the backbone of the comprehensive transport system.In 1909, the father of China's railway, Zhan Tianyou, presided over the construction of the Beijing-Zhangzhou Railway came into being, breaking the assertion that "Chinese people can't build their own railways", and the Beijing-Zhangzhou High Speed Railway was opened to traffic in 2019. From the zero breakthrough of independent design and construction to the world's most advanced intelligent high-speed railway, and the speed from 35 kilometres per hour to 350 kilometres per hour, the Beijing-Zhangzhou line has witnessed the development of China's railways, reflecting China's historic leap from catching up with the times to leading the times.

Academician Du Yanliang mentioned that, according to the national scientific and technological policy of "independent innovation, key leap, supporting development and leading the future", the construction of China's railway, through technological innovation and practice, has formed an advanced high-speed railway innovation road with Chinese characteristics and in line with China's national conditions. He also pointed out that the future development trend of China's railway will be more rapid, networked, green, collaborative, intelligent and resilient.

Finally, Academician Du Yanliang took Sichuan-Tibet Railway Project and Bohai Strait Cross-sea Channel Project as examples to talk about the main challenges faced by China's infrastructure construction, and at the same time, he also analysed the new opportunities in many directions in China's scientific research in the field of civil engineering, which aroused the scientific research enthusiasm of teachers and students.

In the interactive session after the presentation, Academician Du Yanliang patiently and in detail answered the questions raised by many students about the career direction, graduate studies and professional knowledge in this field.

The lecture on Introduction to Civil Engineering is not only a scientific research and academic sharing, but also a guidance and inspiration for contemporary civil engineering researchers. At the end of the lecture, it was widely praised by the teachers and students present, and the report was successfully concluded with warm applause from the whole audience.