Have you every wished you could really know if your child is paying attention at school? Have you every wished you didn't have to get off the couch to do a chore? If Japanese researchers deliver on their promise. Both those wishes could come true. CBS reporter Celia Hatton has more. Imagine a device that could detect whether students are paying attention or one that would allow you to control certain objects without lifting a finger. That's the vision behind a technolgy designed to read minds and make the mind manipulate equipment..like this model train. Sensors shoot infra-red light onto the brain s surface, explains researcher Atsushi Maki. When a human concentrates ... It makes blood flows to the front of the brain. The sensors detect the blood and signal for the train to start (PROFESSOR ATSUSHI MAKI) Your thinking reflects on the movement of this train. and as the mind relaxes.....you guessed it - the train pulls to a stop. (CELIA HATTON) This headgear s a little bulky right now scientists hope that in just a few years, the technology will be refined, so the remote control will be a thing of the past allowing human thought to operate televisions, home appliances, even the simple light switch. A potential boon to the handicapped and the bed ridden. That s not all Hitachi's also developed this machine that answers yes or no questions without saying a word...using a similar principle. According to Dr. Maki, it'll be quite a while before any of these machines are ready to be used by average people... DOCTOR MAKI From 5 to 10 years. BUT IF THIS SCIENTIFIC VISION EVER DOES BECOMES REALITY....THE OLD QUESTION..."A PENNY FOR YOUR THOUGHTS ? "...COULD ....BE A THING OF THE PAST