View Original - Middle East Technical University

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Has all this been a foray at self-sabotage? Perhaps. Definitely close to it in the
middle and in the final hours. That said, I have never been much of a man partial to
abrupt changes of heart. After all it must not be all horror to either mice or men.
I, hereby, must thank certain people who had been there for me and who were equally
impartial to second thoughts.
I thank Galip Yalman, my supervisor, for his solidarity and superb methods of
teaching; members of the examining committee – Kürşat Ertuğrul and Ali Murat
Özdemir for their efforts and lively temperament; and also, faculty members -Cem
Deveci, Ebru Voyvoda, Mustafa Bağırbağ and Tarık Şengül since their doors have
always been open even to those who occasionally had a redundant fever for the
redundant fuss.
My friends and colleagues have been most exceptional. I thank Fırat Duruşan, Ali
Rıza Güngen, M. Ruhi Demiray, Demir Demiröz, Devrim Kabasakal, Alişar Tuncer,
Aykut Renda, Barış Altıntaş and Zafer Yılmaz for they have been truly selfless in my
days of crash and burn.
My family has been most generous and patient. I thank Türkan Karabıyıkoğlu, Ayvaz
Karabıyıkoğlu, Murat Karabıyıkoğlu, Keriman Sarısakal, Nihat Sarısakal, Semih K.
Sarısakal, and elders of the larger family for they have been supportive of me both
emotionally and financially; and in the meantime, withstood more grief and
unpleasantness than I have. I especially thank Hüsrev Ekinci who has been, well,
right all along.
I finally thank Chris Howell, Markus Perkmann and Jurriaan Bredien for their timely
kindness from far.
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