AKRON, Ohio
Population: 198,100
Unemployment: 5.0 percent
Top University: University of Akron
“Rubber City” has remade itself into “Polymer Valley.” Polymers, critical in the manufacture of computers and mobile phones, are not only produced by more than 400 companies in the region but taught at the University of Akron’s College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering. In 2010, the National Polymer Innovation Center was opened on campus. The city, which features a free downtown Wi-Fi corridor, also is known for the BioInnovation Institute, which develops biomedical devices.