Bionic Vision Pioneers Unveil New Lenses

Bionic vision may cost less than $6 million after all: Scientists unveiled a new electronic contact lens this week that is already sparking ideas for future technology. Endowed with a circuit and lights, the gadget isn't ready yet, but makers say it is built with safe, organic materials. It even boasts an electronic circuit a few nanometers wide—about 80,000 thinner than a human hair.

Wearers may one day see data displays, surf the net, and zoom in on distant objects with the new technology, LiveScience reports. Even the visually impaired could get a boost. "People may find all sorts of applications for it that we have not thought about," one engineer on the project said. "Our goal is to demonstrate the basic technology and make sure it works and that it's safe." (More contact lenses stories.)