“Flywheels: How Cities are Creating Their Own Futures,” is a new book by Tom Alberg, former Amazon board member, and managing director of Madrona Venture Group in Seattle, published by Columbia University Press. Excerpt reprinted with permission. The most dynamic way to think about the economic flywheels of Seattle and Silicon Valley is that creative people combined with innovation to beget startups. Those small startups—including not only Microsoft, Amazon, Google, and Facebook but also less famous ones—grew into successful companies that attracted talented people who generated new wealth.