I wish to thank the members of my committee for their support, especially my
major professor, Dr. Kannan Raghunandan whose wisdom and commitment has guided
me through the program from the very beginning. I would also like to extend exceptional
gratitude to Dr. Divesh Sharma who has been a pivotal and inspirational figure during
this monumental period in my life. He unselfishly mentored me and provided invaluable
insights about the intricacies and subtleties of academic research. Finally, I thank Dr.
Vineeta Sharma for her continuous commitment, comments and suggestions throughout
this project.