v
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank all the people who contributed in some way to the work described in this
thesis. First and foremost, I thank my academic advisor, Professor Julia A. Kornfield, for accepting
me into her group. During my tenure, she contributed to a rewarding graduate school experience
by giving me intellectual freedom in my work, supporting my attendance at various conferences,
engaging me in new ideas, and demanding a high quality of work in all my endeavors. Additionally,
I would like to thank my committee members Professor David A. Tirrell, Professor John F. Brady,
and Professor Zhen-Gang Wang for their interest in my work.
Every result described in this thesis was accomplished with the help and support of fellow lab-
mates and collaborators. Neal Scruggs and I worked together on several different phases of the
self-assembled gels project, and without his efforts my job would have undoubtedly been more diffi-
cult. I greatly benefited from his keen scientific insight, his knack for solving seemingly intractable
practical difficulties, and his ability to put complex ideas into simple terms. Yan Xia joined the group
when I was beginning my last year as a graduate student, and, with his knowledge of chemistry and
relentless work ethic, he was able to successfully carry out the synthesis of the model covalent LC
networks. I gained a lot from his vast chemistry knowledge and scientific curiosity. I was fortunate to
have the chance to work with Dr. Michael Kempe, who patiently taught me his method for synthe-
sizing LC triblocks, in addition to a number of other laboratory techniques, and who worked closely
with me in the synthesis of the LC triblocks I present in this thesis. He was an extremely reliable
source of practical scientific knowledge, and I am grateful for his achievements during his time at
Caltech, from which the work described in this thesis followed. I worked (nonstop) in the laboratory
of Professor Samuel Sprunt of Kent State University for one long week in July 2005, and two very
