Take this class if you are at all interested in Climate Change. Prof. Ross is one of the few professors where I could sit through his entire lecture and not feel like falling asleep in the middle of it. Readings are lighter than most classes I have taken here, but many of them have some scientific terms that take some time to understand; also doing the readings (and not, like, the night before the midterm and final, but when they are assigned) is vital to doing well on the midterm/final. He will literally just ask you to summarize key points from readings, if not the whole reading itself, on the midterm and final. Don't let that discourage you from taking the class though, it is one of the best classes here.

This is going to be a really detailed review so bear and mind, and I hope it helps you guys choose this class!

As a discretion, I took this class when the TA strike occurred in Fall 2023, so Professor Ross was kind enough to completely and fully cancel the final (he took our midterm score and added an additional 5% to our grade) and gave us additional extra credit in our participation grade which is both incredibly generous and shows what a wonderful and kind educator he is. So, I am aware that if not for the strike, this class would have definitely been more work, but I believe it is still totally worth it, and necessary to take this class.

In terms of grading, this class is as follows: In-class midterm (20%), take-home midterm (20%), Final Exam (40%), and section participation (20%). The class itself is heavily reading-based, but all reading materials are provided and not a single dime needs to be spent in this class. Every week, there are 2-4 assigned readings that are honestly, despite what other reviews may say, not that much work at all. Sometimes I would do the readings the morning before class. And, he will go over the important parts of reading in the lecture. The readings are also very important and quite interesting, and I found them very enjoyable.

The in-class midterm consisted of six terms you have to define in paragraph style (think FRQ's in high school) which was not completely bad at all. So, he will ask a term/question, and you have about 10 lines to fill out anything relevant from the readings that you think best answer the term. He gives out a topic list before so you can focus on which key terms to review, and he does not test you on anything outside of the study guide, so its all there. What was really odd though was that he wanted you to cite your answers which means, yes, you have to memorize the author of each assigned reading and cite their names in your paragraph answers on the midterm which was so bizarre, to be honest, but again not totally bad. Then, there are 12 multiple-choice questions that asked really specific questions that you can only answer if you really paid attention to the readings. However, two multiple-choice questions are extra credit, so you can miss two and still have a 100% on the multiple choice -- I'm telling you, Professor Ross is very kind. Also, he gives you 30 points just for putting your name on the in-class midterm.

I hated the take-home midterm with a passion and its my only criticism about this class. It was an essay prompt that he released the day of the in-class midterm. So, after taking the in-class midterm, you had a take-home midterm released the same day, and you had, I think, 3 days to complete it. Listen to me very closely. TREAT THE ESSAY PROMPT AS AN FRQ YOU WOULD WRITE IN A HIGHSCHOOL AP CLASS. Verbally in class, the TAs would constantly say "oh, try to write less. Less is best. Really condense your essay." And on the syllabus itself it says, and I quote: "Try to be concise" and "Do not cram every conceivable issue into your answer" so I thought, oh okay, I will keep my points simple and straightforward. WRONG. They literally have an answer key (for an essay!) which they had the audacity to give to us after we got our essay grades back. And this answer key had a list of what exactly they wanted you to put in your essay. So, really, what the best tactic is TO CRAM EVERY CONCEIVABLE THING INTO YOUR ESSAY BECAUSE THEY ARE ONLY REALLY LOOKING FOR THE ANSWERS THAT REFLECT THEIR ANWER KEY AND AS LONG AS YOU HAVE IT, THAT'S A POINT. So, me, trying to be concise and not cram everything I knew about the prompt, lost points because I would omit some answers. DO NOT DO THAT. WRITE EVERYTHING YOU KNOW ON THAT ESSAY, IM SERIOUS. OH THE RAGE I HAVE ABOUT THIS ESSAY.

Please attend discussions. They are 20% of your grade. That is equivalent to an in-class midterm. It's an easy 100%, so if you don't go to discussions then that's on you.

In terms of class, Professor Ross is incredibly funny. I read some reviews that said he was boring and I was like "What? Do you want him to dance on the table while singing the lecture?" What does boring mean to you, because this man could get the whole room laughing, cheering, and clapping -- and he has had some crazy adventures before becoming a professor that he will hopefully share with you as he did with us, and boy is he impressive. We had two guest lecturers all quarter, so the comment saying he constantly has guest lecturers confuses me -- maybe Ross read the review and changed his class style? I am not sure. I will agree though that the TA's do grade hard, and on the midterms they did nitpick at your answers a lot, but that compensates for the sheer amount of extra points and extra credit he gives -- oh yeah and did I mention he curves upwards? Like, guys, he's very generous. Also, another review mentioned you have to write a 50 - page report. I don't know where they got that from -- again maybe Ross changed his syllabus because we never had to do that. The same review said he relies on readings and doesn't teach. Quite the opposite. The lectures have nothing to do with the readings (he said if his lectures were like the readings, then no one would read and everyone would just attend lecture, which is a valid point) so I advise you do the readings and go to lecture. I'm currently reading through past BruinWalk posts, especially the June 16th one, and some of the stuff is just inaccurate and false. Kid got a 97% in the class and criticized the grading like literally calm down its not that deep.

I will admit though, that I loved my classmates and they made the class easy. They were the best. I have never seen a class so committed to helping each other. Students would summarize every lecture and post it in the GroupMe, they would summarize every reading and post it in the GroupMe, students would share their study guides, hold study groups for the exams, share their notes, and honestly it was just the best case of cooperation I have ever seen at UCLA. Any question asked in the GroupMe was quickly answered. Students cared about each other in this class, and I loved it. Please try to do this...it makes the class so much easier. There's literally 100+ of you guys. The workload is significantly cut if you just learn to work together.

Genuinely one of the greatest professor's I have ever taken. Very engaging lectures, despite the heavy reading assignments (ps: pay attention to what you've been assigned, it's usually less than what you think). Great TAs as well. While I loved it, not for those who like taking long exams with IDs making up the bulk of the test, not to mention the second part take home exams.

Would take again.

I honestly have been recommending this class to people who need upper div courses because it was very manageable. The midterm was two parts, an in-class identification and multiple choice part and a take-home essay, and the final was the same format as the in-class portion of the midterm. Though you did have to study and know a lot of the keywords and readings for the exams, it didn't feel like it was anything unfair. The class averages for the exams was high (A-) and the lectures were honestly pretty interesting and went over the readings well enough for you to get a basic understanding. Discussion is mandatory, but not a course that'll really make you hate your life and really was only stressful when testing.