Each high-skilled job in innovation sectors creates approximately five additional jobs in local services, generating a powerful economic ripple effect that transforms entire metropolitan areas. This multiplier effect explains why certain cities continue to grow exponentially while others stagnate.

The book demonstrates how educational attainment and geographical location have become increasingly intertwined. Cities with higher concentrations of college graduates attract more innovative companies, creating a self-reinforcing cycle of economic growth and human capital development.

Moretti details the growing economic divide between innovation hubs and traditional manufacturing regions, showing how this geographic sorting is creating two distinct Americas with dramatically different economic trajectories and opportunities for social mobility.