  This thesis consists of seven scientific papers that cover the
proof-of-concept, the development, and discoveries made through the use of the
BEER (BEaming, Ellipsoidal, and Reflection) algorithm for searching for
companions in the light curves from the Kepler and CoRoT space telescopes.
  Paper I presents the detection of the ellipsoidal and the beaming effects in
the CoRoT light curve of CoRoT-3, a system of a $22$$M_{\rm Jup}$ brown dwarf
orbiting an F star with an orbital period of $4.3$ days. This work served as a
proof-of-concept that these effects are detectable in the space light curves of
systems with brown-dwarf or planetary secondaries, thus indicating that similar
modulations may be detected in the light curves of non-transiting systems.
  Abridged...
  The last study, Paper VII, demonstrates the different strengths and utility
of the BEER search algorithm. It presents the discovery of four short-period
eclipsing binaries in the Kepler light curves, consisting of an A-star primary
and a low-mass WD secondary (dA+WD). The systems show BEER phase modulations
together with primary and secondary eclipses. These add to the 6 Kepler, and 18
WASP, previously known short-period eclipsing dA+WD binaries. The paper shows
that three of the new systems harbor the smallest WDs detected so far in such
binaries. These three binaries extend the previously known population to older
systems with cooler and smaller WD secondaries, allowing to test binary
evolution theories in a parameter region not observed before.
  The seven papers illustrate the effectiveness of the BEER algorithm in
finding both common stellar binaries and rare astrophysical objects. As such,
the BEER tool can serve as an important component in the virtual astronomy
toolbox for mining the vast astronomical data produced by current and future
photometric surveys. Abridged.
