Acknowledgments

This is the acknowledgments I wrote for my thesis.

Six years into its making, this thesis finally comes to life. I must, therefore, give thanks with deepest gratitude to my major advisor, Dr. Rao Govindaraju, for his patience in putting up with my constant procrastination. In truth, Dr. Govindaraju has been a tremendous mentor, and I owe him everything that I have accomplished in my academic endeavor at Purdue. I am also deeply indebted to Dr. Dennis Lyn for his guidance not only in academic research but also in life. I will miss dearly the countless hours that I spent in his office distracting him from his work. His brilliant intellect (along with his hair) will always remind me of Albert Einstein. It has been my great fortune to know Dr. Lyn and have him served on my committee. I am greatly thankful to Dr. Ramachandra Rao for his support and guidance in life. He has been like a surrogate father to me for my many years at Purdue, away from home. I would also like to thank Dr. John Cushman for serving on my committee. I will always be in awe of his exceptional brilliance in mathematics. Dr. James Alleman, while not serving on my committee, has been monumental to both my
undergraduate and graduate career at Purdue. My sincere gratitude goes to him.

I have been fortunate to work with a group of great staff members in the School of Civil Engineering. Without their help, this thesis would not have been possible. They are, Rita Butz, Dinah Hackerd, Linda Higgins, Marcie Duffin, and Tom Cooper. My thanks also go to my fellow graduate students, Zorana Naunovic, En-Ching Hsu, Bin Zhang, and Nazmun Nahar, for their companionship has made my journey through graduate school endurable. Special thanks go to my friends, Karen Cheng and Jennie Mak, who have shared with me good times and given me support through difficult ones.

I have to express my utmost gratitude to my family. I am forever indebted to my parents and my sister for their sacrifice that had allowed me to pursue my dream and my future. I am especially thankful for their unfailing love and support. Their confidence in my ability provided me with the necessary strength to complete this thesis. Finally, I give thanks to God, for He has made every thing possible in my life.

During my graduate study at Purdue, I received financial support from the Joint Transportation Research Program (JTRP) and the Purdue Research Foundation (PRF). The School of Civil Engineering had also provided me with teaching assistantship, from which I gained valuable teaching experience and also discovered my great love for teaching. Their support is gratefully acknowledged and appreciated.