by nate on Saturday, November 28th, 2009 | Attraction, Inspiration, Knowledge, Travel, World | No Comments

The Spoonbridge Cherry sculpture, in Minneapolis Minn. — the No. 1-ranked city for the smartest people in the country – Visions of America, LLC / Alamy

What U.S. city has the most intelligent citizens? According to Travel + Leisure’s 2009 America’s Favorite Cities Survey, the answer is simple: Minneapolis-St. Paul.

Now in its fifth year, the survey—which was open to the online voting public this past summer—covers 30 U.S. cities and was expanded this year to include even more urban areas, such as Cleveland, Providence, and St. Louis.

Its “People” category consistently ranks as the most talked about, with voters weighing in on such topics as what U.S. city has the most attractive people (Miami) or the least (Philadelphia). Not surprisingly, the question of which city is home to the country’s smartest people has also sparked discussion.

Some may credit the weather—for keeping people indoors with their noses in books—for the high IQs of Twin Cities residents, but the heady city is full of clues: top-ranked Macalester and seven other colleges; the Utne Reader and beloved independent Common Good Books; Minnesota Public Radio and the smart radio stylings of Garrison Keillor’s Prairie Home Companion; the revered Guthrie Theater; and a local culture that prides itself on being in the know—and knowing it all.

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Tags: America’s smartest people, smart people in U.S, smartest city