SOC GEN M157
Biology of Superheroes: Exploring Limits of Form and Function
Description: (Same as Ecology and Evolutionary Biology M157.) Lecture, four hours; discussion, one hour. Requisites: Life Sciences 1 and 4, or 7A and 7B. Combines topics posed in popular graphic novels, movies, and television with primary scientific literature to explore bizarre phenomena in natural world and delve into basic scientific theory and principles. Topics covered include evolution, genetics, physiology, biomechanics, brain-machine interfacing, and artificial intelligence among others. Students synthesize primary literature on diverse subjects presented. Letter grading.
Units: 4.0
Units: 4.0
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Most Helpful Review
Winter 2020 - I ended up getting an A, however I truly regret taking this class. The content of this class is abstract and all over the place. Each lecture consists of an introduction to a superhero, and then is followed by weird scientific ideas that somehow relate to the superhero. For example, we learned about Spiderman and the science behind spider webs??? Overall, the content was way too abstract for me to wrap my head around. Additionally, his midterm was super long and the TAs were so nit-picky on grading. In order to get a high grade, I suggest you verbatim spit out his lecture slides onto the exam. The class also consisted of a lot of busy work such as 2 page single spaced reflections, peer reviews, responses to peer reviews... In addition to the final exam, we also had a final project which could either be done individually in the form of an 8-10 page paper or with a group in the form of a 30-45 min podcast. If you're not into superheroes and are looking to take an easy EEB upper div, look further.
Winter 2020 - I ended up getting an A, however I truly regret taking this class. The content of this class is abstract and all over the place. Each lecture consists of an introduction to a superhero, and then is followed by weird scientific ideas that somehow relate to the superhero. For example, we learned about Spiderman and the science behind spider webs??? Overall, the content was way too abstract for me to wrap my head around. Additionally, his midterm was super long and the TAs were so nit-picky on grading. In order to get a high grade, I suggest you verbatim spit out his lecture slides onto the exam. The class also consisted of a lot of busy work such as 2 page single spaced reflections, peer reviews, responses to peer reviews... In addition to the final exam, we also had a final project which could either be done individually in the form of an 8-10 page paper or with a group in the form of a 30-45 min podcast. If you're not into superheroes and are looking to take an easy EEB upper div, look further.
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