Invention is a driver of economic growth. That is the assertion of Brookings latest report on U.S. patenting and its effect on the country's economic prosperity entitled Patenting Prosperity: Invention and Economic Performance in the United States and its Metropolitan Areas. The U.S.'s innovative capacity and activity has increased steadily, but other nations are catching up and the U.S. must identify the implications of this fact to remain competitive. Authors Jonathan Rothwell, José Lobo, Deborah Strumsky, and Mark Muro compiled USPTO patent information from 1975 to 2012 detailing the quality of the patent, the metropolitan area of residence of the inventor, the industrial orientation of the patent and other relevant material. They found that high rates of patenting coincide with greater productivity, lower unemployment and the creation of publicly traded companies within U.S. Statistical Metropolitan Areas. The correlation is strong enough that the authors claim the effect of patents on growth is roughly equal to that of having a highly educated workforce.