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The tongue, in addition to being the best way to taste the food we love so much, is one of the most sensitive
and perceptive transmitters in the entire body. Scientists at the Florida Institute for Human and Machine
Cognition are working on a way to take advantage of the sensory capabilities of the tongue for far more than just taste. Using a small plastic strip
to connect 144 micro-electrodes to the tongue, information about stationary and moving objects is sent to the
wearer from a helmet known as the "Brain Port," which is equipped with small sensors and other equipment to
take stock of the environment the wearer is in. In effect, this means that the tongue can allow people to
"see" their environment when normal sight isn't possible or convenient, like underwater. Instead of having to
read a device like a compass or a sonar machine while diving, a diver can receive directions through his
tongue. One diver who was testing the device underwater "likened the feeling on his tongue to Pop Rocks candies," but could easily locate a
small object via cues from the device on his tongue. Tests of the technology with blind participants showed that
subjects could easily find doors and catch balls.
The scientists foresee military applications for the technology and will be demonstrating it to Navy and Marine Corps divers later this year.
