1

Charm City

Image: Girish Dalvi

Even with this nickname, this coastal spot wasn’t always known for its good looks . In fact, back in the '70s, it was struggling with a bit of an image problem. For that reason, a creative PR campaign worked some magic and gave it a nickname that stuck. Now it’s known for its iconic seafood and working-class roots. Oh, and locals are seriously proud of their blue crab dishes. This nickname has a certain sparkle to it, don’t you think?

2

The Bayou City

Image: Nicole Herrero

Think steamy summers, sprawling highways, and a whole lot of swampy waterways. This nickname may sound like it belongs in Louisiana, but don’t be fooled. It’s a nod to the bayous that weave through this massive southern city. It’s also a hub for space travel, energy, and some top-notch food. If you know the South, this one should ring a bell. Have you guessed it already?

3

The Big D

Image: JosephHershMedia

Everything’s bigger in Texas, and this city wears its size with swagger. The nickname itself is bold and simple: Just one big letter. It brings up images of cowboy boots, shiny buildings, and football fever. This place is known for business, barbecue, and a whole lot of bravado. You know the state, but do you know which Texas titan we’re talking about?

4

The Golden City

Image: IRa Kang

Between the shimmering water, a world-famous structure, and a "bright" past, this place practically glows. Its nickname is short and shiny, much like the hills it rests upon. Known for quirky charm and tech power, it’s a city where history and innovation collide. And yes, the fog does roll in, but somehow it just adds to the magic. Got it yet?

5

Rip City

Image: Edgar Chaparro

This one’s a bit of a curveball… Yes, we’re referencing basketball here because this nickname started as a throwaway comment during a basketball game in the '70s, but it stuck like glue. Now you’ll see it on jerseys, bumper stickers, and maybe even a tattoo or two. It doesn’t make a lot of sense, but that’s part of the charm. Sports fans, this one’s for you!

6

Beantown

Image: Xuancong Meng

Baked beans might not sound glamorous, but they sure helped this historic place earn a nickname. That and a long list of American "firsts," this city is wonderful. It’s also been known to call itself the "Hub of the Universe." Has anyone seen modest? History buffs and chowder lovers, you’re probably already picturing cobblestone streets, aren’t you?

7

Baltimore

Image: Brendan Beale

Yep, Charm City is Baltimore! That catchy name was cooked up to shine a brighter light on the city’s best features. And guess what? It worked! Baltimore’s got a rich mix of culture, grit, and pride, plus some of the best crab cakes you’ll ever taste. Not bad for a city once overlooked, right?

8

Houston

Image: Carlos Delgado

Say hello to The Bayou City: Houston! Its unique geography inspired the nickname, and the city’s grown into a powerhouse of space exploration, culture, and business. Between NASA connections and a killer food scene, Houston has more going for it than just the heat. And yes, those bayous are still winding through it all.

9

Dallas

Image: Gabriel Tovar

That big old D? Dallas, of course. This city isn’t shy about its size or influence, and the nickname says it all. From skyscrapers to stadiums, Dallas lives large and wild. Add the cowboy flair, and you’ve got a Texas city that owns its identity. We love it!

10

San Francisco

Image: Alexey Komissarov

The Golden City? None other than San Francisco, what else could it be? With its iconic Golden Gate Bridge and a history rooted in gold rush dreams, it’s an easy one to guess. But even beyond the sparkle, the city has got a heart of tech and a soul of protest. Yes, the fog is quite the character, but this city shines bright anyway.

11

Portland

Image: Zack Spear

If you guessed Rip City was Portland, you guessed right! The name came out of a Trail Blazers game and somehow became a token of pride. That’s Portland for you: a little weird, totally charming, and full of surprises.

12

Boston

Image: todd kent

You guessed it: Beantown is Boston. The beans are just the beginning—Boston is packed with revolutionary charm, Ivy League brains, and a sports scene like no other. And if you hear someone call it "The Hub," now you know what they mean. It might just be the center of the universe after all.

1

Titanic (1997)

James Cameron’s Oscar-winning blockbuster frames the tragic 1912 sinking around the fictional romance of Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Rose (Kate Winslet), while depicting real-life First Officer William Murdoch (Ewan Stewart) accepting bribes, shooting passengers, and taking his own life.

When the film premiered in 1997, the portrayal of Murdoch caused significant outrage. Survivor accounts prove the First Officer acted heroically, working tirelessly to launch lifeboats and saving hundreds of lives before dying in the freezing Atlantic. Additionally, third-class passengers were not locked below deck by armed guards as portrayed in the movie. _Titanic_’s producers eventually traveled to Murdoch’s hometown of Dalbeattie, Scotland, to issue an official apology to his descendants.

2

Braveheart (1995)

Mel Gibson’s epic depicts William Wallace leading a 13th-century Scottish rebellion against English rule, wearing belted plaid kilts and seducing Isabella of France (Sophie Marceau).

Many details in the film are inaccurate. For example, Scots didn’t wear kilts until the 16th century, nearly 300 years after Wallace’s death. Furthermore, Isabella was roughly three years old and living in France during Wallace’s rebellion, making the affair impossible.

3

Pearl Harbor (2001)

In Michael Bay’s romantic war drama, Rafe McCawley (Ben Affleck) and Danny Walker (Josh Hartnett) face Japanese Zero fighters, join the British Eagle Squadrons before the U.S. enters World War II, and witness direct attacks on civilian medical units.

In real life, U.S. Army Air Corps officers like Rafe were legally forbidden from joining Britain’s Eagle Squadrons while the United States remained neutral. During the December 7, 1941 raid, the Japanese prioritized attacking battleships, airfields, and fuel depots, and they didn’t target field hospitals or civilian nurses as depicted in the film. Also, President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s (Jon Voight) dramatic moment where he stands up out of his wheelchair to inspire his cabinet never occurred.

4

Pocahontas (1995)

Disney’s animated film famously tells the story of a young Powhatan woman named Pocahontas who falls in love with the English explorer Captain John Smith, helping to promote peace between their two cultures.

When John Smith arrived in Virginia in 1607, Pocahontas (whose actual name was Matoaka) was only around 10 to 12 years old, while Smith was a 27-year-old soldier, and there was no romantic relationship between them. Smith’s famous account of Pocahontas saving his life by placing her head over his is debated by modern historians, who view it as either a misunderstanding of a tribal adoption ceremony or an invention in his later writings. Pocahontas was later captured by English settlers, held for ransom, converted to Christianity, and married tobacco merchant John Rolfe before dying in England at age 21.

5

Gladiator (2000)

The plot of Gladiator revolves around Maximus Decimus Meridius (Russell Crowe) when he witnesses Emperor Marcus Aurelius (Richard Harris) being smothered to death by his son Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix), who seizes the throne, rules as a tyrant, and is later killed in gladiatorial combat inside the Colosseum.

In reality, Marcus Aurelius was never murdered by his son; he died of an infectious illness in 180 AD. Commodus had already been co-emperor for three years before his father’s death. Far from an usurpation, Commodus ruled Rome for 12 years. He didn’t die in the sands of the arena either: he was strangled in his bath by his wrestling partner, Narcissus, during a palace coup. Moreover, Roman gladiatorial fights were officiated sporting events, not chaotic deathmatches.

6

Shakespeare in Love (1998)

A young William Shakespeare (Joseph Fiennes) suffers from writer’s block until he meets aristocrat Viola de Lesseps (Gwyneth Paltrow), who disguises herself as a man to act on stage, inspiring him to write Romeo and Juliet .

Almost the entire narrative is historical fiction. Viola de Lesseps never existed, and Romeo and Juliet wasn’t inspired by a secret love affair. Women were indeed banned from performing on the Elizabethan stage, but monarchs like Queen Elizabeth I never attended public theaters, which were considered unsafe and unhygienic. Instead, theater companies were hired to give private performances at court. Furthermore, by the mid-1590s, Shakespeare was already married to Anne Hathaway and was an established playwright in London, not an impoverished unknown struggling for ideas.

7

A Beautiful Mind (2001)

Ron Howard’s biopic presents John Nash (Russell Crowe) battling schizophrenia. In the film, the Nobel Laureate mathematician has vivid visual hallucinations of a college roommate, a young girl, and a secret government handler.

It is true that John Nash lived with paranoid schizophrenia, but his hallucinations were auditory and delusional (he heard voices and believed extraterrestrial beings were communicating through newsprint). Filmmakers acknowledged altering his symptoms because visual figures were easier to convey on screen. The film also sugarcoated Nash’s personal life, omitting his first child born out of wedlock, his divorce from his wife Alicia, and his intimate relationships with other men.

8

JFK (1991)

Director Oliver Stone follows New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison (Kevin Costner) as he uncovers a conspiracy behind President John F. Kennedy’s 1963 assassination involving the CIA, FBI, military leaders, and Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson.

Historians criticize JFK for presenting discredited conspiracy theories as historical facts. Key characters in the film (such as Donald Sutherland’s "Mr. X") were complete fabrications. Garrison’s actual prosecution of businessman Clay Shaw was based on dubious testimony and resulted in Shaw’s acquittal in under an hour. The narrative of a multi-agency coup remains unsupported by official evidence, yet the film prompted the release of classified records under the JFK Records Act.

9

The Sound of Music (1965)

In the iconic film The Sound of Music , governess Maria (Julie Andrews) teaches naval Captain von Trapp’s seven children to sing and helps the family escape the 1938 Nazi annexation of Austria by hiking over the Alps into Switzerland.

Had the von Trapp hiked over the mountains behind their house in Salzburg, they would have walked straight into Nazi Germany near Hitler’s mountain retreat at Berchtesgaden. In real life, the family walked to their local train station and boarded a train to Italy before emigrating to the United States. Also, the personalities were reversed: the real Captain von Trapp was warm and musical, whereas Maria was strict. What’s more, the couple had already been married for over ten years before leaving Austria.

10

Saving Private Ryan (1998)

The opening D-Day landing sequence in Saving Private Ryan is praised by military veterans for its technical realism, but the film’s core premise is fictional. Following the invasion at Omaha Beach, Captain Miller (Tom Hanks) leads a U.S. Army Ranger squad into enemy territory in Normandy to find Private James Ryan (Matt Damon), whose three brothers were killed in action.

The plot is loosely inspired by the real-life Niland brothers, but the U.S. military never dispatched an entire squad on a dedicated search mission through enemy lines to extract a single private. Additionally, the final battle in the fictional town of Ramelle overstates the ability of infantry small arms against heavy German armor, which in reality was neutralized by artillery and tactical air strikes.

1

Approval voting

Image: Element5 Digital

The approval voting system is an electoral mechanism in which each voter may select any number of candidates, and the winner is the candidate approved by the largest number of voters .

This differs from plurality voting, in which a voter may choose only one option from several, and the option with the most votes wins.

2

Ballot fatigue

Image: Phil Hearing

If you have ever looked at a ballot and felt overwhelmed by the long list of races and issues further down, you have experienced ballot fatigue . This occurs when voters choose not to vote on lower-ballot races or issues.

3

Blanket primary

Image: Mick Haupt

A blanket primary is an election in which voters can select candidates from any party , regardless of their own or the candidates' political affiliation. This contrasts with a closed primary, where only registered party members can vote

4

Canvass

Image: Ernie Journeys

This term has two possible meanings. On the one hand, canvassing refers to the process of aggregating and verifying all valid ballots cast , which includes absentee, early voting, Election Day, provisional, challenged, military, and overseas citizens.

The second definition of this word, in the context of elections, canvassing also refers to the act of soliciting votes .

5

Caucus

Image: Arnaud Jaegers

A caucus can refer to a closed meeting of members of the same political party or faction, typically held to select candidates or decide on policy. It can also mean a group of people united to promote a shared cause . Similar, perhaps, but not the same.

6

Electoral college

Image: Joshua Woroniecki

An electoral college is a body of people known as presidential electors , formed every four years to represent U.S. states, who formally cast votes for the election of the president and vice president .

7

Mixed ticket

Image: Tiffany Tertipes

A concept somewhat similar to the previously mentioned blanket primary, a mixed ticket is a ballot where voters may select candidates of their choice regardless of party affiliation up to the maximum allowed for each race.

8

Dark money

Image: Mathieu Turle

In the context of elections, dark money refers to funds that are donated to a political candidate during an election campaign from organizations that are not required to disclose their donor’s identities . As expected, this money is often used to influence elections.

9

Gerrymandering

Image: Element5 Digital

This unusual word describes the process of manipulating electoral district boundaries to favor one party or candidate over another. Wayne Dawkins, a professor at Morgan State University, explains it as "politicians picking their voters instead of voters picking their politicians."

10

Super PAC

Image: Mockup Free

A Super PAC (Political Action Committee) does not contribute to candidates or parties but makes independent expenditures in federal races , such as running ads, sending mail, or communicating other messages that specifically advocate for the election or defeat of a particular candidate.

11

Air gap

Image: Andrew Neel

Put in simple terms, an air gap is a physical separation between systems that requires data to be transferred manually, using methods like a disc, flash drive, or other portable media.

Election systems use air gaps intentionally to prevent or control access . The election system cannot be connected to the internet at any time.

12

Undervote

Image: Glen Carrie

As the name suggests, an undervote occurs when a voter selects fewer choices than allowed in a contest . Similarly, an overvote happens when a voter selects more choices than permitted.