MATH 3B
Calculus for Life Sciences Students
Description: Lecture, three hours; discussion, one hour. Requisite: course 3A with grade of C- or better. Not open for credit to students with credit for course 31B. Applications of differentiation, integration, differential equations, linear models in biology, phase lines and classifying equilibrium values, bifurcations. P/NP or letter grading.
Units: 4.0
Units: 4.0
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Most Helpful Review
Winter 2018 - I had Popa for 31B. This class was really easy, probably because I took AP Calc BC. He is really clear in lectures and the tests are EXACTLY like the homework, so make sure to do the HW. If you go to lecture, do ALL the homework, go to discussion, you should be good.
Winter 2018 - I had Popa for 31B. This class was really easy, probably because I took AP Calc BC. He is really clear in lectures and the tests are EXACTLY like the homework, so make sure to do the HW. If you go to lecture, do ALL the homework, go to discussion, you should be good.
Most Helpful Review
Professor Radko has a great personality. She is really nice and helpful. She tries to be as straightforward as possible, unlike some other math professors. She does a lot of examples and explains each step throughly. That being said, sometimes she jumps right into examples before introducing the concept. In cases like that, I suggest you read the book. Sometimes a quick scan of the book helped me more than being in class and going to discussion. I had a tough time with the material at the beginning of the course and had to do a lot of practice problems to keep up, but once I learned to work hard, I was able to slack off at the end. My opinion of each test- Midterm 1: HARD. Average was 60% Average was Midterm- EASY Average was 62% FINAL- VERY HARD! STUDY FOR THE FINAL. Do not be like me and leave it to the last minute! (Literally, I studied from 12-4:30 the day of) The average was 46% I got a 60/60 on both midterms, 82/120 on the final, and A in the class. Overall, I suggest you do a lot of practice problems and attend office hours. Pay attention to your notes because she draws a lot of test examples from that. The class is hard work, but feels rewarding at the end! Good luck Bruins!
Professor Radko has a great personality. She is really nice and helpful. She tries to be as straightforward as possible, unlike some other math professors. She does a lot of examples and explains each step throughly. That being said, sometimes she jumps right into examples before introducing the concept. In cases like that, I suggest you read the book. Sometimes a quick scan of the book helped me more than being in class and going to discussion. I had a tough time with the material at the beginning of the course and had to do a lot of practice problems to keep up, but once I learned to work hard, I was able to slack off at the end. My opinion of each test- Midterm 1: HARD. Average was 60% Average was Midterm- EASY Average was 62% FINAL- VERY HARD! STUDY FOR THE FINAL. Do not be like me and leave it to the last minute! (Literally, I studied from 12-4:30 the day of) The average was 46% I got a 60/60 on both midterms, 82/120 on the final, and A in the class. Overall, I suggest you do a lot of practice problems and attend office hours. Pay attention to your notes because she draws a lot of test examples from that. The class is hard work, but feels rewarding at the end! Good luck Bruins!
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Most Helpful Review
Richardson made this class a lot more difficult than it needed to be. The material itself is not hard to understand (as long as you have a basic understanding for calculus), but Prof. Richardson consistently put topics on the test that were irrelevant and not covered in class. His tests are extremely hard and he aims for an average of around 50% to "get a nice bell curve". I ended up getting an A- in the class, but I felt like I had mastered the material better than that grade indicated. Make sure you take advantage of all the freebie points he gives, such as homework. If you can, I would try to take this class with an easier, better rated professor. If not, it's not the end of the world, but be prepared to really work and dedicate a good amount of time to this class.
Richardson made this class a lot more difficult than it needed to be. The material itself is not hard to understand (as long as you have a basic understanding for calculus), but Prof. Richardson consistently put topics on the test that were irrelevant and not covered in class. His tests are extremely hard and he aims for an average of around 50% to "get a nice bell curve". I ended up getting an A- in the class, but I felt like I had mastered the material better than that grade indicated. Make sure you take advantage of all the freebie points he gives, such as homework. If you can, I would try to take this class with an easier, better rated professor. If not, it's not the end of the world, but be prepared to really work and dedicate a good amount of time to this class.
Most Helpful Review
Professor Denomme lectures fairly fast and is therefore hard to follow at times simply because he doesn't pause for the class to write/digest what he's written on the board before writing more stuff. However, he is a really nice and funny guy, and his tests are not too difficult. He gives study guides and practice tests about a week before the tests, and as long as you review those (along with past homework), you will be fine on the tests. There are also weekly quizzes (7), and you drop your worst quiz at the end of the quarter. Final Grade: A+
Professor Denomme lectures fairly fast and is therefore hard to follow at times simply because he doesn't pause for the class to write/digest what he's written on the board before writing more stuff. However, he is a really nice and funny guy, and his tests are not too difficult. He gives study guides and practice tests about a week before the tests, and as long as you review those (along with past homework), you will be fine on the tests. There are also weekly quizzes (7), and you drop your worst quiz at the end of the quarter. Final Grade: A+
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Most Helpful Review
I really liked Professor Sinclair. Although his exams were difficult, as long as you understood the material, went to OH, and reviewed homework problem you could get an A in his class. He is a very conceptual professor and cares a lot about his students. He is also very approachable and always willing to help and answer any questions. He gave weekly quizzes, but as long as you did the HW and understood it you could 10/10 on all your quizzes. He had 2 midterms and 1 final, they are hard, but like I said if you understand the material you should do fine, plus he gives a generous curve. That being, said if you put in the time and effort and not simply memorize everything you should do fine and get an A!
I really liked Professor Sinclair. Although his exams were difficult, as long as you understood the material, went to OH, and reviewed homework problem you could get an A in his class. He is a very conceptual professor and cares a lot about his students. He is also very approachable and always willing to help and answer any questions. He gave weekly quizzes, but as long as you did the HW and understood it you could 10/10 on all your quizzes. He had 2 midterms and 1 final, they are hard, but like I said if you understand the material you should do fine, plus he gives a generous curve. That being, said if you put in the time and effort and not simply memorize everything you should do fine and get an A!
Most Helpful Review
He was alright. He would be serious and have a grave look on his face most of the time, but would have the occasional random joke you would say. He had a funny accent. You could tell he knew his stuff very well, but at times he had some trouble having the class know the stuff as well. He was fair with his grading.
He was alright. He would be serious and have a grave look on his face most of the time, but would have the occasional random joke you would say. He had a funny accent. You could tell he knew his stuff very well, but at times he had some trouble having the class know the stuff as well. He was fair with his grading.
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