NearMe: Dynamic Exploration of Geographical Areas

Web GIS offer precious data to explore geographic areas but they might overload the user with large amounts of information if (s)he is unable to specify efficient search queries. Services such as OpenStreetMap and Google Maps support focused information search, which requires people to exactly define what they are looking for. However, what can be searched within a specific area mainly depends on what is located there. Thus, the question is how to provide the user with an overview of the available data (s)he can look for, instead of forcing her/him to search for information in a blind way.