Wouldn't it be lovely if there were a mouse shaped so as to resemble the planet Jupiter, and fashioned from Chinese flowering ash in Japan’s rural Gunma prefecture? Well, fear not, there is. What's more, you move the cursor by adjusting the tilt of the sphere, thereby offering a new way to navigate across your computer screen. This of course raises the question: what other ways are there of interacting with a computer, aside from the usual input devices, i.e. the mouse and keyboard?

In addition to the Wii, with its motion sensing capability, much research has gone into what is called brain-computer interface. In other words, the ability to control something entirely by thought waves. Earlier this year a technology company called Ambient unveiled a product called 'The Audeo'- a human-computer interface for communication without the need of physical motor control or speech production. Using signal processing, unpronounced speech representing the thought of the mind can be translated from intercepted neurological signals.

Which brings us to Mindball. Devised by an American company called Productline, Mindball is a two-man game controlled by players’ brain waves. Players, wearing headbands, sit opposite each other at the Mindball table. The ball moves on the playing area back and forth until it rolls into one of the player’s goal. Brain waves are detected by sensors attached to the headbands. The sensors (electrodes) are connected to a biosensor system. The biosensor system registers the electrical activity in the brain. Food for thought.