If you are an arm-chair mariner like me, you are probably fascinated by ship information, location, destination/origin, speed/direction, photos, cargo, etc. Well, all this and more can be accessed live for commercial ships within coverage areas (coastal areas around the world). Take MarineTraffic.com [2] for a spin and spend the next hour looking at ships moving around the world.
Links:
[1] http://www.library.northwestern.edu/libraries-collections/evanston-campus/transportation-library
[2] http://marinetraffic.com/ais/default.aspx?level0=100
[3] http://www.library.northwestern.edu/related-pages/marine-traffic