The information in the class is interesting. He gives handouts at every lecture and they are what the test is based off of, so use them. He gives study guides for both tests. Go to lecture just to get the handouts. They aren't necessary and are very long, although he does try to get a couple jokes in. The grading is VERY subjective. My TA didn't mark anything off on one of my essays and when I approached her, she justified it by saying that she 'still gave me a good score'. So....watch out for that. Make it seem like you care and be VERY specific on the essay section of the exams. He said there was a page limit, but it wasn't strictly enforced. All in all, I'd take the class again. It's not difficult, just make nice with your TA. :)

smith is a great and entertaining teacher. the class is pretty easy in terms of the workload and the material you have to learn. unfortunately, it is NOT easy to get an A. your grade basically rests in the hands of the TA you have. my advice, get to know him/her and go to their office hours so they think you really care about the class. i ended up with an A- in the class even though i really felt like i did absolutely nothing wrong in it. the grading is really subjective and the best thing to do about it is to use VERY SMALL handwriting on your tests so you can fit in as much information as possible on your essays (because there is a page limit). i didnt do this on the midterm and ended up with an 89.4% on it (yeah my TA, luthra, was really a jerk). i got a B+ on my essay, which is worth like half your grade (even though i had several people proofread it, one of which who's a philosophy major who told me "if this isn't an A paper then i dont know what is"). so on the final (worth only like 25% of grade) i wrote really small on my essays and ended up with an A- in the class. so writing small mustve worked. only use the book to expand your knowledge. 99% of what u need to know is on smith's handouts.

prof. smith is very much caring, funny and just good! i guess i can see how some people thought the topics were boring, but here is my opinion: this class tells all about the mind of scientists and just solely looking at the world of science/scientists from the philosopher's point of view.

This class is definitely pretty easy to do well in. Here is what you must do:

1. Go to lecture and take notes and/or get the handouts he gives about the main thinkers and ideas in the class. These will be invaluable come time to study for the midterm and final and will help with your paper also.

2. The paper is 40% of your grade and the final and midterm are 25% each. This means that you must focus on the paper and really know what you are talking about. I did not do this, got a semi-poor grade on my paper and I now must hope that the fairly easy tests will boost my grade.

3. My section was somewhat worthless because my TA sometimes got lost in the material and the students usually didn't do the reading so we ended up talking about concepts we had covered weeks before. The best thing you can do is stay up on your reading so you get your participation grade and have an easier time in studying for your tests.

Overall, I enjoyed the class. Sheldon is a nice, funny guy and really sticks to the material rather than getting off on tangents, especially political ones, as many professors at UCLA do.

I'd recommend this to anyone who needs a philosophy GE or any psychology student who needs to meet their pre-major philosophy req.

Professor Smith is a very nice, and often funny, but this isn't a super easy GE. The material is extremely boring, and, in my opinion, a lot of bs. Listen to other reviewers, do the reading, and go to lecture (and take good notes), but forget discussion, as it typically tuns into dumb people arguing about irrelevent philosophic viewpoints (very annoying). If you don't mind doing the reading it isn't terribly hard, but don't expect to only study the night before tests and get an A.

I took Professor Smith's class for a GE and I'm very happy about it. The reading is pretty dense but the lectures and the in-class handouts really clear things up. Lectures are pretty engaging; I got the sense he could tell when class was getting dull and he usually threw in a funny joke to get the students up again. Tests are pretty easy... just attend lecture and do the reading to support it if you want. My TA was pretty knowledgeable, but going to section wasn't really necessary. Philosophy 8 is a good class.

Professor Smith was great. The midterms and paper s were very fair, hes very approachable, a funny guy as well. The book is hard to read but his lectures really clear things up. He also hands out summaries for each topic, which REALLY help. I would def take him, I took Phil 8 as a GE and Im glad I took it with Prof. Smith

I thought Professor Smith was really good. He explains the concepts he presents in class very well and if you don't understand a concept, asking him well definitely clear things up. Although he makes you read the Theory and Reality book which confuses me, with his lectures, everything is much more clear. Although the TA for discussion doesn't help much, he definitely does.