Florida Poly student Geoffrey Ruiz, from Lecanto, and his team members created and presented a fishing app, called Identafish, at the University’s STEM Student’s BIO Expo earlier in November. The app is designed to identify and provide information on any fish caught in the Gulf of Mexico.
Through this project, Florida Poly students were encouraged to create a concept that included both technology and biology by applying biology to their individual STEM degree programs. The team component was also a critical part of the learning experience.
“One day I was fishing in Ozello and I didn’t know what kind of fish I caught,” said Ruiz. “It gave me the idea to create this app with my group at Florida Poly.”
The app works by entering information about the fish on your smart phone such as color, markings or whether the fish in question has scales or skin. The app will then provide information as to what kind of fish it is, the Florida regulations and its habitat. Ruiz and his classmates want to eventually make the app even more user-friendly, by having users take a photo of the fish for the app to identify.
Currently a sophomore at Florida Polytechnic University, Ruiz graduated from Lecanto High School in 2013. He is majoring in big data analytics, the process of examining big data to discover hidden patterns. After graduating from Florida Poly, Ruiz plans on continuing his education by obtaining his master’s degree.