We all remember when the economic stimulus package was announced earlier this year by President Obama. However, what we were unsure about was were all of the money was going. MSNBC has released a new mapping tool that allows users to see where and how much stimulus money has been spent.

The stimulus tracker is very interesting because it allows users to see not only where stimulus money is being spent, but also in what ways the money is being used. The website provides state and county level data and provides a detailed list for each project that is being covered by the stimulus. The detailed information includes how much is being spent on each project, who the contractor is, and provides a brief description about what the project is supposed to accomplish. In addition to the individual projects that are being covered by the stimulus, the website also provides how the money has been issued by month, and shows how much money is allocated, advertised, and awarded. Data can also be filtered by the industry that the stimulus is serving. For example, users can filter out all stimulus money that is being spent on healthcare projects, architectural projects, and transportation. This is a very useful and interesting website that shows how mapping can be used effectively to present very important information.