Twin Cities inventions featured in Smithsonian exhibit

An exhibit at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History puts the spotlight on the Twin Cities in the 1950s as an important place where invention thrived.

"Places of Invention," which opened last month, gives shout-outs to geographic areas in history where a concentration of brain power led to big and important things. The exhibit looks Silicon Valley, Hollywood, Hartford, Connecticut, as well as Minnesota's Medical Alley. It explores how place — whether physical, cultural, or social — leads to invention.

The exhibit is on display in Washington, but a companion book has been published. Monica Smith wrote the chapter about Medical Alley.