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Steve Chiotakis: A new report ranks states by the climate for new economic growth. Where's the best place to launch? From the Entrepreneurship Desk at Oregon Public Broadcasting, Mitchell Hartman opens the envelope.

Mitchell Hartman: And the winner is . . .

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. . . Massachusetts, followed by Washington, Maryland, Delaware and New Jersey. The list isn't all that surprising. These states have lots of "knowledge workers" and world-class R&D in fields like biotech and clean technology.

Bob Litan of the Kauffman Foundation says a hyperactive environment for start-ups is also a good sign.

Bob Litan: You'll see a lot of firm births and firm deaths, because a dynamic economy is one in which there's a lot of churn.

Litan says regions with "old economy" farming and manufacturing are now coming up in the world.

Litan: Take for example the Great Plains States. There's a lot of bio-this and bio-that that can be converted into energy.

Litan says the combination of natural resources, and well-funded university research could make the Midwest the hub of an entrepreneurial revolution in renewable energy.

I'm Mitchell Hartman for Marketplace.