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Smartest Cities in America

Boulder, Durham, DC trump Ivy stronghold Boston

By Jane Yager,  Newser Staff

Posted Aug 30, 2010 8:57 AM CDT

(Newser) – The number-one brainiest city in America is a university town that major science research centers have made home and whose tech-friendly business culture draws start-ups: Boulder, Colo. Writing in the Daily Beast, Richard Florida ranks the country's 20 brainiest metro areas, as determined by things like number of adults with PhDs and master's degrees. Boulder is followed by:

  1. Durham, NC: Almost 20% of residents have graduate degrees in this high-brainpower Research Triangle town, home to Duke and North Carolina Central University.
  2. The DMV: Is it all the politicians that make the Washington, DC, area so smart? Probably a bigger factor is the city's wealth of think tanks and science institutions.
  3. Boston-Cambridge, Mass.: On one side of the river you've got MIT, Harvard, and Tufts. On the other, Boston College, Boston University, Northeastern, Emerson, and lots more.
Click here for the complete list.

In this July 3, 2008 photo, Dan Baker, director of the Laboratory of Atmospheric and Space Physics, is shown in the building's atrium in Boulder, Colo., home to many research labs.
In this July 3, 2008 photo, Dan Baker, director of the Laboratory of Atmospheric and Space Physics, is shown in the building's atrium in Boulder, Colo., home to many research labs.   (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
On Friday, Feb. 26, 2010, student uses a clicker to answer a question while in the physics class of Professor Michael Dubson at the University of Colorado in America's smartest city, Boulder, Colo.
On Friday, Feb. 26, 2010, student uses a clicker to answer a question while in the physics class of Professor Michael Dubson at the University of Colorado in America's smartest city, Boulder, Colo.   (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 21 comments
Warrenl
Oct 25, 2010 5:11 PM CDT
All I had to see was San Fansisco's rating to know this is bunk. They gave us Nancy and the 9th district, they should be at the bottom of the list, so in reality, your list is upside down! A lot of non fiction is fiction, just someones opinion an not worth my time to buy and read. Such as Al Gores book, pure fiction.
YetAnotherCollegeKid
Sep 13, 2010 5:59 PM CDT
Man, Boulder gets a lot of love on Newser. Sure it's great, and I loved the time that I lived there, but I never got the impression that it topped national lists. Very cool.
summerfairy
Aug 30, 2010 10:03 PM CDT
Colorado rocks. I would move there tomorrow if I could. I have had several friends move there and they refuse to even come back for a visit. After seeing their pics, I can see why.
 

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