In the future, you won't need to carry a computer. You'll only have to roll up your sleeve.

Researchers at Microsoft and Carnegie Mellon University are developing a device that will project a touchscreen onto the human body – in most cases, your hand or forearm.

They call the technology "skinput."

Lead researcher Chris Harrison makes his living turning everyday objects into touch screens. Currently available platforms allow users to projects screens onto tables and other flat surfaces.

Harrison points out that you can never find a table just when you need one, so he's focusing on the one surface you can count on – yourself. The body provides "two square metres of external surface area" – depending on how often you hit the gym.