A blind soldier can see with his tongue

What next? Hearing with your eyes?

A soldier blinded when a grenade exploded near him, has been given the power of sight thanks to a new device that uses his other sensory equipment to see.

Lance Corporal Craig Lundberg of the 2nd Battalion Duke of Lancaster's, was selected by the UK Ministry of Defence to take part in trials that let him see by using its tongue and a mouth borne lolly pop shaped device.

Wearing sunglasses that include a camera, Lundberg is able to navigate through his surroundings thanks to signals sent from the camera to his mouth. This information is then used to build up a profile of the environment.

"It feels like licking a nine-volt battery or like popping candy," Lundberg told theGuardian. "The camera sends signals down onto the lollypop and onto your tongue, you can then determine what they mean and transfer it to shapes".

The MoD has paid under £20k for the device, which we suspect is a lot less than it pays for its woeful helicopters, and according to Lundberg, it is money well spent.

"It's only a prototype, but the potential to change my life is massive," he said. "It has enabled me to pick up objects straight away, I can reach out and pick them up when before I would be fumbling around."