Professor Shapley was great. She was very caring and nice, and extremely clear in her explanations. She never seemed caught off guard by any questions, which was also great. As for the class, it was extremely easy. It will definitely be a lot harder if you don't go to class, because the lectures require a bit of explanation. But as it was, I went to every lecture, didn't sleep through them, studied 1hr for the midterm, and 1hr for the final and easily received A's on both. Homework is easy too. The class is mostly math/physics based, and the astronomy concepts are easy and actually interesting too.

Very very patient professor... She went through lectures with great detail and always repeats the important stuff from previous lectures. If you go to all her lectures and managed not to sleep through it, you'll be fine. This class in mostly about physics, you don't get to read about astronomy stuff till the last 3 or 4 weeks. Some of my friends couldn't stand it and dropped it halfway, missing out the good stuff at the end. Overall very interesting class if you want to know more about black holes or other great mysteries of the universe. If you hate math or physics, don't take it. Professor wise, she is the most kind, caring and friendly professor I've had. Exams are as easy as the homework, and homework is worth 20% of the final grade.