Situated in the heart of North Carolina, the Triangle is one of the nation's fastest growing areas. It has received numerous accolades from national publications as one of the country's best places to live and work. To the west of the Triangle lie the majestic Blue Ridge and Great Smokey Mountains and, to the east, a historic strand of barrier islands and miles of white sandy beaches. Anchored by leading technology firms, government and world-class universities and medical centers, the area's economy has performed exceptionally well. Significant increases in employment, earnings, personal income and retail sales are projected over the next 15 years.
Education:
Public secondary education in the Triangle is similar to that of the majority of the state of North Carolina, in which there are county-wide school systems (the exception is Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools within Orange County but apart from Orange County Schools). The Wake County Public School System, which includes the cities of Raleigh and Cary, is the largest school system in the state of North Carolina and the 18th largest in the United States, officially recording an enrollment of 139,599 students on the 20th day of the 2009-10 school year. Other larger systems in the region include Durham Public Schools (about 33,000 students) and rapidly growing Johnston County Schools (about 31,000 students).　
Sports:
With the significant number of universities and colleges in the area, NCAA sports are very popular, particularly those sports in which the Atlantic Coast Conference excels.The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Tar Heels in Chapel Hill, North Carolina State University Wolfpack in Raleigh, and the Duke University Blue Devils in Durham are all members of the ACC. Rivalries among these schools are very strong, fueled by proximity to each other, with annual competitions in every sport. Adding to the rivalries is the large number of graduates that high schools in the region send to each of the local universities. It is very common for students at one university to know many students attending the other local universities, which increases the opportunities for "bragging" among the schools. The four ACC schools in the state, Duke, North Carolina, North Carolina State, and Wake Forest University are referred to as Tobacco Road by sportscasters, particularly in basketball. All four teams consistently produce high-caliber teams. Each of the Triangle-based universities listed have won at least two NCAA Basketball National Championships.
The East Carolina University Pirates are 75 miles (121　km) away in Greenville, North Carolina. Competitions against East Carolina are popular non-conference contests for many of the schools in the Research Triangle, and the university is considered a rivalry by some fans.
The region has only one professional team of the four major sports, the Carolina Hurricanes of the NHL, based in Raleigh. Since moving to the Research Triangle region from Hartford, Connecticut, they have enjoyed great success, including winning a Stanley Cup and advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals. With only one top level professional sports option, minor league baseball and other sports are quite popular in the region. The Durham Bulls in Downtown Durham are a AAA Minor League Baseball affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays, and the Carolina Mudcats, based in Zebulon, 10 miles east of Raleigh, are a AA affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. In Cary, the Carolina RailHawks are playing the 2010 soccer season in USSF Division 2, a temporary league established to settle a conflict between the United Soccer Leagues and a new incarnation of the North American Soccer League..