To my wife Jill, without whose unending support I most certainly would not be here today. Acknowledgements I would like to acknowledge the generous support of my many professors at the University of Texas who have given graciously of their time in support of my education and research over the past two years; especially, Professors Daniel Miranker and Adnan Aziz, who advised on this project; and Professors Christine Julien and Joydeep Ghosh, whose courses and research heavily informed the work herein.