PHYSICS 1B
Physics for Scientists and Engineers: Oscillations, Waves, Electric and Magnetic Fields
Description: Lecture/demonstration, four hours; discussion, one hour. Enforced requisites: course 1A, Mathematics 31B, 32A. Enforced corequisite: Mathematics 32B. Fluid mechanics, oscillation, mechanical waves, and sound. Electric charge, field and potential, capacitors, and dielectrics. Currents and resistance, direct-current circuits. P/NP or letter grading.
Units: 5.0
Units: 5.0
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Most Helpful Review
I enjoyed taking a class with Professor Abachi. He usually explained the ideas in lecture very well, and his clear derivations of formulas usually expanded on the conceptual ideas rather than making the class dry or boring. Outside of class, this professor made himself available all the time--he was always helpful during office hours, on the discussion board of the class website, and on the extra afternoon review sessions that he himself held before exams. He is very knowledgable about the material he teaches and will find different ways to explain this material to make it understandable. I would recommend reading the book and going to his office hours because sometimes he goes a little too fast in lecture, though he does pause often to answer questions during lecture. His exams are straight-forward, and he offers "pretend-exams" that are extremely good to study before midterms and the final.
I enjoyed taking a class with Professor Abachi. He usually explained the ideas in lecture very well, and his clear derivations of formulas usually expanded on the conceptual ideas rather than making the class dry or boring. Outside of class, this professor made himself available all the time--he was always helpful during office hours, on the discussion board of the class website, and on the extra afternoon review sessions that he himself held before exams. He is very knowledgable about the material he teaches and will find different ways to explain this material to make it understandable. I would recommend reading the book and going to his office hours because sometimes he goes a little too fast in lecture, though he does pause often to answer questions during lecture. His exams are straight-forward, and he offers "pretend-exams" that are extremely good to study before midterms and the final.
Most Helpful Review
Prof Althouse was very concerned (he hosted his own separate review sessions before each of his two midterms as well as the sessions his TA's held) and kept on asking us after each new concept if we understood him (and took the time to answer). He also took 5 min. before each lecture to do a mini review of concepts/equations from the previous lecture, which I really appreciated. He's very clear most of the time about his lectures - they are very, very geared to making you understand what is going on. A little boring, but that was mostly due to the lecture material. He's very clear what will be on the tests, which were fair (and were very similar to problems he went over in class or were in the textbook). Grades: 4 units from 5, best grade given; (1) HW, (1) for each of 2 midterms, (2) final. I kept dozing off during lecture and slacked off majorly, but if you put in some effort and pay attention, an A will definitely be doable (haha not in my case). He also did a lot of cool demonstrations and really wanted us to like physics. Practice midterms/final were also provided. TAKE HIM!
Prof Althouse was very concerned (he hosted his own separate review sessions before each of his two midterms as well as the sessions his TA's held) and kept on asking us after each new concept if we understood him (and took the time to answer). He also took 5 min. before each lecture to do a mini review of concepts/equations from the previous lecture, which I really appreciated. He's very clear most of the time about his lectures - they are very, very geared to making you understand what is going on. A little boring, but that was mostly due to the lecture material. He's very clear what will be on the tests, which were fair (and were very similar to problems he went over in class or were in the textbook). Grades: 4 units from 5, best grade given; (1) HW, (1) for each of 2 midterms, (2) final. I kept dozing off during lecture and slacked off majorly, but if you put in some effort and pay attention, an A will definitely be doable (haha not in my case). He also did a lot of cool demonstrations and really wanted us to like physics. Practice midterms/final were also provided. TAKE HIM!
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Most Helpful Review
Spring 2020 - I took the class during the covid pandemic, so your experiences may vary from mine. An is a very good professor and was able to explain the material fairly well. It was his first time teaching this class, but I think he did a great job. In the first few lectures I felt that his explanations were very math heavy, and if you haven't taken 32B it might be hard to understand the math behind the explanations. He will only get better in the future. An was very lenient during the pandemic, an he was willing to make compromises for the well-being of the students which is good to know. He gave 24 hour midterms, but decided to go back to 3 hours for the final since the midterms got leaked on chegg, which I feel was an appropriate response, albeit a bit harsh to international students. My advice for the class is to do the discussion worksheets he gives out every week and make sure you understand them really well. Also pay attention and really internalize the concept test slides he puts on ccle, since his exams not only have problems with numerical or symbolic answers but also short answer questions which test your understanding of the big picture. And also do the challenge problems from the textbook. An is a great professor, and he will only get better. If you have the chance to take him, I suggest you do
Spring 2020 - I took the class during the covid pandemic, so your experiences may vary from mine. An is a very good professor and was able to explain the material fairly well. It was his first time teaching this class, but I think he did a great job. In the first few lectures I felt that his explanations were very math heavy, and if you haven't taken 32B it might be hard to understand the math behind the explanations. He will only get better in the future. An was very lenient during the pandemic, an he was willing to make compromises for the well-being of the students which is good to know. He gave 24 hour midterms, but decided to go back to 3 hours for the final since the midterms got leaked on chegg, which I feel was an appropriate response, albeit a bit harsh to international students. My advice for the class is to do the discussion worksheets he gives out every week and make sure you understand them really well. Also pay attention and really internalize the concept test slides he puts on ccle, since his exams not only have problems with numerical or symbolic answers but also short answer questions which test your understanding of the big picture. And also do the challenge problems from the textbook. An is a great professor, and he will only get better. If you have the chance to take him, I suggest you do
Most Helpful Review
Winter 2023 - Dr. Bauer tests us fairly and adjusts the difficulty of future exams according to our past performance (he aims for a B/B- median overall). The textbook, homework, and lecture all complement each other. Lectures are extremely clear, with a good amount of relevant derivations and examples. Discussion worksheets are really challenging for some reason (how many times did the binomial theorem/miscellaneous approximating assumptions crop up?), but they're only graded for completion.
Winter 2023 - Dr. Bauer tests us fairly and adjusts the difficulty of future exams according to our past performance (he aims for a B/B- median overall). The textbook, homework, and lecture all complement each other. Lectures are extremely clear, with a good amount of relevant derivations and examples. Discussion worksheets are really challenging for some reason (how many times did the binomial theorem/miscellaneous approximating assumptions crop up?), but they're only graded for completion.
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Most Helpful Review
Let me start off by saying that Bertello is really not that great of a lecturer. I did't understand a lot of what he was talking about in class and it seemed like no one else did either. That being said, his homework assignments don't take much time (about 10 problems on Mastering Physics each week). He gives a decent overview of what is going to be on the midterm and final before he gives it so there aren't any surprises. It's not too hard to know what study for the test, as long as you give yourself enough time to teach it to yourself, because you won't learn much in lecture. A lot of the problems on the exams are similar to the homework problems or the other examples in the book. Also, he is a pretty nice grader and gives you a slightly better grade than other professors might.
Let me start off by saying that Bertello is really not that great of a lecturer. I did't understand a lot of what he was talking about in class and it seemed like no one else did either. That being said, his homework assignments don't take much time (about 10 problems on Mastering Physics each week). He gives a decent overview of what is going to be on the midterm and final before he gives it so there aren't any surprises. It's not too hard to know what study for the test, as long as you give yourself enough time to teach it to yourself, because you won't learn much in lecture. A lot of the problems on the exams are similar to the homework problems or the other examples in the book. Also, he is a pretty nice grader and gives you a slightly better grade than other professors might.
Most Helpful Review
Spring 2018 - Anton Bondarenko is the biggest of homies at UCLA. He gave out at least 20 PTE's for 1B, so you wouldn't be stuck taking a different (and more difficult) professor. Not only is he super clear and thorough in his lectures, but he also HANDWRITES all of his lecture notes and posts them as well as the slides online. He does do clickers to incentivize you to go to class, but they are only after he finishes a chapter. When it came to exams, Anton sent us a study guide that went over exactly what you needed to know and what you don't need to know, and it really helps with your studying. He also hosts his own exam review sessions, and the questions he goes over during the review are almost identical to the test questions, which are completely fair. I had Bondarenko for both physics 1A and 1B and I'd definitely say his tests were harder for 1B, but by no means impossible. You think it can't get any better, but it does: THE MAN USES BRUINCAST. So literally anything he says or writes is on record, so you will have more than enough resources to help you succeed. Plus, he's super receptive during office hours, and he's probably one of the most patient individuals whom I've met in my life. Overall, I came into physics 1A hating physics and now I'm leaving 1B as a physics double major, thanks to this incredible enigma. Take him and watch the magic unfold.
Spring 2018 - Anton Bondarenko is the biggest of homies at UCLA. He gave out at least 20 PTE's for 1B, so you wouldn't be stuck taking a different (and more difficult) professor. Not only is he super clear and thorough in his lectures, but he also HANDWRITES all of his lecture notes and posts them as well as the slides online. He does do clickers to incentivize you to go to class, but they are only after he finishes a chapter. When it came to exams, Anton sent us a study guide that went over exactly what you needed to know and what you don't need to know, and it really helps with your studying. He also hosts his own exam review sessions, and the questions he goes over during the review are almost identical to the test questions, which are completely fair. I had Bondarenko for both physics 1A and 1B and I'd definitely say his tests were harder for 1B, but by no means impossible. You think it can't get any better, but it does: THE MAN USES BRUINCAST. So literally anything he says or writes is on record, so you will have more than enough resources to help you succeed. Plus, he's super receptive during office hours, and he's probably one of the most patient individuals whom I've met in my life. Overall, I came into physics 1A hating physics and now I'm leaving 1B as a physics double major, thanks to this incredible enigma. Take him and watch the magic unfold.
Most Helpful Review
Winter 2024 - I've never been good at physics and pushed taking this class until my senior year. I'm really glad I did, because taking this class with Professor Carter was great! Lectures were long, but he usually spent half of the time going over conceptual questions, which helped a ton for reinforcing understanding (especially with abstract E&M concepts). His exams were also very fair, and he often pulled questions directly from discussions/in-class problems/practice exams, so there were never any surprises. I'm not sure when he'll be teaching this again, but he is a legend who made me more confident in my physics abilities.
Winter 2024 - I've never been good at physics and pushed taking this class until my senior year. I'm really glad I did, because taking this class with Professor Carter was great! Lectures were long, but he usually spent half of the time going over conceptual questions, which helped a ton for reinforcing understanding (especially with abstract E&M concepts). His exams were also very fair, and he often pulled questions directly from discussions/in-class problems/practice exams, so there were never any surprises. I'm not sure when he'll be teaching this again, but he is a legend who made me more confident in my physics abilities.
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