Crime Stats, Google Maps

Except in the aggregate, I don't pay much attention to crime statistics.  They are just not very useful.

Chicagocrime.org. using a combination of public data and google maps, has changed all that.   

Now, there's a freely browsable database of crimes reported in Chicago and boy can you learn a lot.

Here's a map of "aggravated assault: hands, feet, fists".

You can see where the crimes occurred and where the most common locations for any type of crime are.  Aggravated assault, for example, happens most often at public school buildings (240 crimes) while the distant second place is a bus (11 crimes).

There's even RSS feeds for every police beat and city block in the city.  Amazing.  Sure beats listening to the police scanner.