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Hyphenated

Question

What are the global origins of America's melting pot culture?

Exploration

Data visualization exploring the intersection of dual cultural identities in America.

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Hyphenated — desktop view

Changelog

Added search and filled underrepresented heritage gaps

Added a search bar that filters across all 439 people by name, heritage, domain, or description — making it much easier to find someone specific. Also filled in data gaps for heritages that were underrepresented in the dataset.

Better mobile gestures and 100 more people added

The country detail panel now closes with a swipe, and the map supports double-tap to zoom on mobile — both gestures that felt obviously missing. Also grew the dataset from 301 to 401 notable people.

Simplified the design and added 100 more people

Cleaned up the visual design — simplified the headers and tightened the color palette so the map stays the focus. Also expanded the dataset by 100 more notable people.

First map of America's hyphenated identities

Started visualizing the heritage backgrounds of notable Americans — exploring what the country's cultural mix actually looks like when you put names and faces to it. Early prototype, but the core idea landed well enough to keep building.