  == Alpha, beta, gamma? ==  Frankfurt and Milan are alpha cities (along with London), Berlin is a gamma city? Seemingly, the authors have neither been to Frankfurt and Milan (nice and rich cities, but without any atmosphere of global importance) nor to Berlin (one of the most interesting cities I've ever been to and which feels as urban as a city can feel). Berlin gamma, Frankfurt alpha. Very strange. Apparently, the population of a city is more significant than academic rankings based on curious criteria: London, Berlin, Madrid, Rome, Paris are the largest and (in my opinion!) the most global and urban cities of the EU.  