Cary residents deemed smartest in the state
The same website that published ‘The Snobbiest Cities in North Carolina’ has returned with a list of the “smartest and dumbest” cities in the U.S.
Based in Durham, list-creating website Roadsnacks has, using three criteria, ranked 250 U.S. cities. Among North Carolina cities, Cary was ranked by the site as the “smartest”.
Compared to similar sites, RoadSnacks’ methodology seems remarkably simple; cities are ranked according to their high school graduation rates, the percentage of men in the city, and the ratio of bars to libraries.
While the high school graduation rate is an obvious choice, and the ratio of bars to libraries is somewhat understandable, the percentage of men would seem a puzzling metric. RoadSnacks defends this ranking measure by noting that a Washington Post story stated that research shows the IQs of men to be lower than those of women on average.
Print companies are frequently asked to include in a city’s high ranking on lists compiled by websites on promotional material, if the metrics used appear to be scientific and detailed enough to be credible.
The cities were ranked from dumbest to smartest. At No. 250, the smartest city in the country was Irvine, California, and next came Naperville, Illinois. Cary came in at tenth smartest with a ranking of No. 240. The next smartest city in North Carolina, according to RoadSnacks, is Raleigh at No. 205. RoadSnacks’ home base, Durham, achieved a placement in the smart half at No. 162.
Based in Durham, list-creating website Roadsnacks has, using three criteria, ranked 250 U.S. cities. Among North Carolina cities, Cary was ranked by the site as the “smartest”.
Compared to similar sites, RoadSnacks’ methodology seems remarkably simple; cities are ranked according to their high school graduation rates, the percentage of men in the city, and the ratio of bars to libraries.
While the high school graduation rate is an obvious choice, and the ratio of bars to libraries is somewhat understandable, the percentage of men would seem a puzzling metric. RoadSnacks defends this ranking measure by noting that a Washington Post story stated that research shows the IQs of men to be lower than those of women on average.
Print companies are frequently asked to include in a city’s high ranking on lists compiled by websites on promotional material, if the metrics used appear to be scientific and detailed enough to be credible.
The cities were ranked from dumbest to smartest. At No. 250, the smartest city in the country was Irvine, California, and next came Naperville, Illinois. Cary came in at tenth smartest with a ranking of No. 240. The next smartest city in North Carolina, according to RoadSnacks, is Raleigh at No. 205. RoadSnacks’ home base, Durham, achieved a placement in the smart half at No. 162.