Cambridge is a unique community in its mix of cultural and social diversity, intellectual vitality and technical innovation. The city is home to internationally known Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and over one-fourth of all its residents are college students, while one-sixth of all its jobs are in higher education.

Yet residents feel that Cambridge is far more than a college town. It has long been an industrial innovator, producing America's first factories for ladders, piano keys and waterproof hats. At one point, it was the third largest industrial center in the Commonwealth. Today, former factory buildings which once turned out soap or socks house cutting edge firms in biotechnology, computer software and other emerging technologies. Close to one-third of Massachusetts' biomedical employers reside in Cambridge.