35-year old blogger Tanya Vlach lost one of her eyes in a car accident three years ago. Now she wants to make the best of it by replacing her prosthetic acrylic eye with an ‘eye cam’ - a webcam for her eye socket. She wants one capable of dilating with changes of light that also allows her to blink to control its zoom, focus and an on/off switch for when she sees something too obscene to record.

“There have been all sorts of cyborgs in science fiction for a long time, and I’m sort of a sci-fi geek,” said Vlach. “With the advancement of technology, I thought, ‘Why not?’”

With an eye like that she could blog her daily events and life story through her own eye’s perspective. I hope she leaves it on while in the shower. That’s a webcam blog I’d like to see!

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We’ve seen artificial corneas that could replace damaged organic corneas, but how about a digital image sensor that adjusts itself like a human retina? That’s exactly what John Rogers at the University of Illinois is creating. An improved method of transferring silicon sensors onto a curved surface allowing for the sensor to capture wide-angle views with low distortion. Because it avoids using a conventional flat surface for image capturing, this digital retina is able to perform feats that ordinary cameras cannot. It’ll eventually lead to advancements in security surveillance and capturing wildlife footage.

Using conventional chip manufacturing technology, John Rogers and his colleagues have found a way to bend silicone without forming creases in it. The camera they built has only 256 pixels, making it a low-resolution camera, but they claim the same technique used to craft this camera could be used to craft a wide-angled megapixel camera.  The ladies dorm just got more accessible, Porky’s-style.

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I bet you’re wondering why Geordi LaForge was always so glum. If you’ve ever gotten a scratch on your cornea, you’d know how painful it can be. Thankfully, researchers at Stanford University have developed a new artificial cornea. I’m not talking about eyeball lamps either, these are real corneas for real eyeballs. Animal studies incorporating the cornea are showing promise, which could lead to the elimination of cornea transplants completely. It’s made up of two interwoven polymer gels, reminiscent of a contact lense. One layer provides durability while the other absorbs water, assisting the eye by keeping it nourished.

Because many people suffer loss of sight due to corneal disease, these new artificial corneas could be someone’s chance to get their vision back. As for Geordi, well, he doesn’t need new eyes. He’s got that kick ass VISOR that picks up electromagnetic signals across the entire EM spectrum.

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Japanese mobile phone operator, NTT DoCoMo is experimenting with this mind boggling approach to mobile device control that’s sure to give anyone an eye headache worse than TV coming through your glasses. How does it work? Firstly, no hands are needed. Simply move your eyes up or down to raise volume, accordingly. To skip a track, look right twice. Currently, they only have this technology controlling a mobile music player by sensing the electric fields eyes make when they move. In the future, who knows what this form of control could be used for?

Listening to the latest and greatest Josh Groban hits? Turn that shit up. All it takes is looking up. Say there is a bird flying overhead and you just so happened to be listening to the loudest death metal, ever. You look up, the volume raises and you’re officially halfway to becoming Helen Keller. You’ll then be forced to listen to tunes with the Shake-Up headphones, which is more buzzing and vibrating than any Justice song you’ve ever heard.

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I don’t know what Turkish designer Erdem Selek was thinking when creating this, but Big Brother must have been floating around in someone’s mind. What seems like an ordinary pillow is really a space-alien with a digital eye. It’s designed to let newborn mothers watch their children through a webcam when they’re sleeping.

Some would argue it’s lovely, others would claim invasion of privacy. I suppose it depends if your baby is a supporter of the Patriot Act. Either way, it’s just a prototype, so you’ll have to stick to the walkie talkies for now.

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