Aly Abdelaziz is currently a postdoctoral fellow at Professor Grasselli’s Geomechanics Group in the Civil & Mineral Engineering Department at the University of Toronto in Canada where he received his PhD in 2023. Aly holds a Bachelor of Science in 2007 in Civil – Structural Engineering from Benha University in Egypt. Aly has over eight years of professional experience in the field of geotechnical investigation and construction monitoring and material testing in an accredited laboratory in Dubai. His current research broads several interests which include numerical representation of synthetic rock using spatial Voronoi tessellations and measuring influence of machines on strains during testing. He also worked on true-triaxial hydraulic fracturing test to develop an understanding of rock stimulation in the context of fracture type as well as its complexity. In addition, he constantly strives to bridge gaps between his professional knowledge and the academic world to achieve balance between academic practice and industry standards.