NY Times: Pittsburgh Thrives After Casting Steel Aside

Great NYT article about the resilient Pittsburgh economy and about how it can be a model for what Detroit is going through right now. Great that Pittsburgh is finally starting to get national recognition for performing better than the rest of the country in this downturn.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/08/business/economy/08collapse.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2

Pennsylvania Comes in #1 in Building Biotech

If you follow the local economy and business sector then this won't come as a shock to you, but Pennsylvania has been named the top state in the country in 2008 for building its biotech industry, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

This honor comes from Business Facilities Magazine's 2008 Rankings Report. Of course, this isn't ALL because of Pittsburgh. It is a statewide ranking and Philly is also a biotech powerhouse. The combination of two strong biotech markets in the state helped us beat out California, Massachusetts and Texas as well as every other state.

We're, Like...Really Good at Medical Stuff

As most people who live in the region already know, the local medical/healthcare industry has gradually, over the last 35 years, replaced manufacturing as the backbone of the Pittsburgh economy. UPMC and other Pittsburgh medical institutions are consistently ranked very highly in national publications. I think we take these assets for granted and don't praise them enough.

I've got to tell you, there are some very impressive things going on in Oakland lately that deserve some recognition. Check out these recent headlines:

• Children's Hospital Surgeon to Lead National Study on Head Trauma
• UPMC Doctors Perform First U.S. "Beating Heart" Transplant
• DOD Taps UPMC to Run Its First Injury Prevention and Performance Enhancement Laboratory

Good job, guys!