Instead of piercing the tongue with metal barbells, let’s embed a tiny magnet and use that mouth muscle as a pointing device. That’s the idea of Georgia Tech researchers who’ve turned the tongue into a joystick that could steer a wheelchair or use teeth as a keyboard.

It’s done with a magnet placed under the tip of the tongue, and a bulky headgear receiver to track the commands, including up/down, left/right, and single/double click. The tech is already working well, but the team wants to make that geeky-looking headgear less obtrusive.

Could this be the solution to that driving-while-texting problem?

Associated Press, via Technology Review