Scientists have created a cyborg cockroach that can be controlled with smartphones, according to the BBC.

The RoboRoach, will be used as a neuroscience learning tool in schools, was presented at the Technology, Entertainment and Design conference, the theme this year was "think again."

The RoboRoach is created by attaching a "backpack" to a living roach, the device communicates with the neurons found in the antennae of the insect.

The neurons relay the information to the roach's brain through electricity. Surgery is performed on the insect using anesthetics to place wires in the roach's antennae so that they can pick up the electronic information.

Once the surgery is performed and the backpack is on, the movement of the RoboRoach can be controlled on a smartphone.

"This is not just a gimmick, the technique is the same as that used to treat Parkinson's disease and in cochlear implants," said neuroscientist Greg Gage, who created the concept. "The point of the project is to create a tool to learn about how our brain works."

The team did have to think through ethical problems that could come up when manipulating a living creature this way.

"We are pretty certain that this doesn't impose pain on the insect and they still have free will because they adapt very quickly and ignore the stimulation," Gage said.

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) is concerned about the welfare of the insect, and the message that the experiment could be sending to children.

"The RSPCA believes it is inappropriate to encourage children to dismantle and deconstruct insects," said a spokesperson for the organization. "The fact that the neuroscientist is 'pretty certain' that this doesn't impose pain is, frankly, not certain enough. There are already plenty of fascinating studies involving insects which can help children to learn - and ones that do not deliberately harm insects."

Gage is the head of Backyard Brains, a new group of engineers and scientists that want to change how neuroscience is taught in schools.

"The audience for this is teachers. We would like to see this in more high schools," Gage said.

He's working to raise $10,000 to get RoboRoach kits into high schools. The kits will consist of, "backpacks, batteries and electrodes as well as optional insects."

"One in five people will have a neurological disorder in their lives and there are often no cures for them," Gage said. "Getting kids interested in neuroscience is important."

See Greg Gage give a TedTalk about the project: