MATH 32A
Calculus of Several Variables
Description: Lecture, three hours; discussion, one hour. Enforced requisite: course 31A with grade of C- or better. Introduction to differential calculus of several variables, vector field theory. P/NP or letter grading.
Units: 4.0
Units: 4.0
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Most Helpful Review
Took Math with Ifti. His lectures were really boring and came straight from the book (literally-- he copied everything word-for-word and even read all the sentences out loud). However, his weekly homework was really doable, but it sucked having to come to class every Friday just to turn in the homework (I developed a habit of reading the book for myself during class time in the library instead of listening to him read it to me). His tests were super straight forward and I ended up with a B+ with pretty minimal effort. I don't even think a curve was necessary.
Took Math with Ifti. His lectures were really boring and came straight from the book (literally-- he copied everything word-for-word and even read all the sentences out loud). However, his weekly homework was really doable, but it sucked having to come to class every Friday just to turn in the homework (I developed a habit of reading the book for myself during class time in the library instead of listening to him read it to me). His tests were super straight forward and I ended up with a B+ with pretty minimal effort. I don't even think a curve was necessary.
Most Helpful Review
TAKE BUTLER! Professor Butler is a hilarious and caring mathematics teacher. I enjoyed going to all of his classes this quarter. He often makes hilarious remarks during class and is always excited to be teaching. He has funny T-shirts as well...some of them are math-related. He was the first math professor at UCLA who I truly understood and actually felt excited about. His tests can be on the difficult side, but if you keep up the hard work, attend his office hours, and study a good amount you should be fine. He also tends to give hints on his test that are really helpful, but only if you understand the hint ;) If you try to do the problem the traditional way, it may take forever or seem impossible. BUT if you understand his hint, it can be easily solved in a few lines. Often his tests seem hard while you're taking them, but then when you see the answer key you're like, REALLY? COME ON! But learn from this. Learn his ways..haha. Finally, take covel tutoring with this class also if possible. I found it to be very complimentary to the course.
TAKE BUTLER! Professor Butler is a hilarious and caring mathematics teacher. I enjoyed going to all of his classes this quarter. He often makes hilarious remarks during class and is always excited to be teaching. He has funny T-shirts as well...some of them are math-related. He was the first math professor at UCLA who I truly understood and actually felt excited about. His tests can be on the difficult side, but if you keep up the hard work, attend his office hours, and study a good amount you should be fine. He also tends to give hints on his test that are really helpful, but only if you understand the hint ;) If you try to do the problem the traditional way, it may take forever or seem impossible. BUT if you understand his hint, it can be easily solved in a few lines. Often his tests seem hard while you're taking them, but then when you see the answer key you're like, REALLY? COME ON! But learn from this. Learn his ways..haha. Finally, take covel tutoring with this class also if possible. I found it to be very complimentary to the course.
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Most Helpful Review
Fall 2021 - Majority positive comments for Prof. Hood so I'll provide a different perspective: - Lectures: lectures were unclear and Hood does not use slides. He lectures with notes from ripped notebook paper reminiscent of high school days. He does post handwritten notes on Canvas a few days later but they are in condensed form and don't very much match with lecture notes. - Homework/textbook: homework problems are pulled from the textbook. Although time consuming, they are doable and can reinforce content understanding. Odd numbered answers are available in the back. However, Hood's lecture content and the textbook content often differ (one annoying thing was that the mathematical symbols used were different and it was easy to get confused). Hood includes content on his exams that the textbooks do not cover. - Exams and practice exams: Hood posts practice exams several days leading up to the exam. The real exams are basically a complete replica of question type with practice exams with the numbers changed. However, the real exams are an incredible time crunch and involve many tedious calculations. You might get stuck on the algebra part of a problem instead of the calculus concept. While partial credit is given, there is no mercy for minor calculation errors and typos. On one midterm I wrote dxy as dyy for one sub question and had -10 points cause of it, entire letter grade gone. Straight raw scores are used for exams - no curve. At heart Hood is a friendly professor and easy to talk to. He's tolerant and wants to help. However, from an objective standpoint his lectures/lecture notes are difficult to understand and exams are toughly graded. Textbook will help but about 1/4 of the content will not be included. He will not be teaching Winter 2022 but will teach again for Spring 2022. Some students are definitely going to do well for the class but for others/majority this class wont be easy.
Fall 2021 - Majority positive comments for Prof. Hood so I'll provide a different perspective: - Lectures: lectures were unclear and Hood does not use slides. He lectures with notes from ripped notebook paper reminiscent of high school days. He does post handwritten notes on Canvas a few days later but they are in condensed form and don't very much match with lecture notes. - Homework/textbook: homework problems are pulled from the textbook. Although time consuming, they are doable and can reinforce content understanding. Odd numbered answers are available in the back. However, Hood's lecture content and the textbook content often differ (one annoying thing was that the mathematical symbols used were different and it was easy to get confused). Hood includes content on his exams that the textbooks do not cover. - Exams and practice exams: Hood posts practice exams several days leading up to the exam. The real exams are basically a complete replica of question type with practice exams with the numbers changed. However, the real exams are an incredible time crunch and involve many tedious calculations. You might get stuck on the algebra part of a problem instead of the calculus concept. While partial credit is given, there is no mercy for minor calculation errors and typos. On one midterm I wrote dxy as dyy for one sub question and had -10 points cause of it, entire letter grade gone. Straight raw scores are used for exams - no curve. At heart Hood is a friendly professor and easy to talk to. He's tolerant and wants to help. However, from an objective standpoint his lectures/lecture notes are difficult to understand and exams are toughly graded. Textbook will help but about 1/4 of the content will not be included. He will not be teaching Winter 2022 but will teach again for Spring 2022. Some students are definitely going to do well for the class but for others/majority this class wont be easy.
Most Helpful Review
Fall 2019 - So I know my review is pretty negative, so I'll start out with some pros. He wears the same snazzy chalk-stained black t-shirt, blue jeans, and jacket to class every day, has a New Jersey accent, makes a lot of anti-humor jokes, and bears a passing resemblance to the new Joker. Cons: The material covered in his class is far beyond the scope of 32A, and for me at least was very difficult to understand. His homework is also only very loosely related to the 32A material covered in the book required for this class, and is basically impossible to do without the help of TAs. I think you can gauge how difficult his midterms and finals are from what I wrote before (spoiler: they are incredibly difficult). Not gonna lie, this class was probably the worst experience I had during this quarter. If you do get put in his class, however, I would recommend that you try to switch out as soon as possible, that way you won't be too behind in the new lecture.
Fall 2019 - So I know my review is pretty negative, so I'll start out with some pros. He wears the same snazzy chalk-stained black t-shirt, blue jeans, and jacket to class every day, has a New Jersey accent, makes a lot of anti-humor jokes, and bears a passing resemblance to the new Joker. Cons: The material covered in his class is far beyond the scope of 32A, and for me at least was very difficult to understand. His homework is also only very loosely related to the 32A material covered in the book required for this class, and is basically impossible to do without the help of TAs. I think you can gauge how difficult his midterms and finals are from what I wrote before (spoiler: they are incredibly difficult). Not gonna lie, this class was probably the worst experience I had during this quarter. If you do get put in his class, however, I would recommend that you try to switch out as soon as possible, that way you won't be too behind in the new lecture.
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Most Helpful Review
While Dai's exams were "fair" in that he was lazy and just put the homework questions on his test, his lectures were only somewhat helpful. He often joked around and sped through some material to ensure it was covered. This is not to say he was an ineffective teacher: he would often repeat some concepts to make sure they got through to the students. However, he didn't seem as professional as the other professors.
While Dai's exams were "fair" in that he was lazy and just put the homework questions on his test, his lectures were only somewhat helpful. He often joked around and sped through some material to ensure it was covered. This is not to say he was an ineffective teacher: he would often repeat some concepts to make sure they got through to the students. However, he didn't seem as professional as the other professors.
Most Helpful Review
Winter 2019 - Das has the easiest tests in the math department. His review session, study guide, and past paper are very helpful. You only need to have a superficial understanding of the formulas and learn to apply them to ace the tests. Problems in his final study guide may appear in the final. Weekly quizzes on discussions can be tricky. 32A is a very easy but useful class. Highly recommend Das if you are looking for an easy A.
Winter 2019 - Das has the easiest tests in the math department. His review session, study guide, and past paper are very helpful. You only need to have a superficial understanding of the formulas and learn to apply them to ace the tests. Problems in his final study guide may appear in the final. Weekly quizzes on discussions can be tricky. 32A is a very easy but useful class. Highly recommend Das if you are looking for an easy A.
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