ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my thesis advisor Dr. Venkat Devarajan for involving me in this project and helping me in each step during the course of my work. This thesis originated as an idea from Dr. Devarajan. I have tried to pursue it to its logical conclusion under his constant guidance. His encouragement and advice kept me highly motivated. It has been a great endeavoring experience to work with Dr. Devarajan. I would like to sincerely thank my thesis committee faculty members Dr. Stephen Gibbs and Professor Bernard Svihel for their time and cooperation. I would like to thanks all my colleagues for their timely advice and support. I would also like to thank my roommates for their constant support. Finally, I would like to thank my family who have always been supportive and given me the best possible education. Above all, I would like to thank GOD because of whose blessing I have reached so far in life