Took Physics 1B over the summer with Corbin, and it was a fantastic class. Lectures were funny and informative. In response to the previous review, Corbin DID specifically tell the class to look over the diving board problem he did as an example during lecture. The rotating circular mass was basically the same as that problem, only in different form--Corbin went over torque, moment of inertia, and basically everything we needed to know for the quiz.

That being said, Corbin really cares about his students. He's in his office often and always willing to help you understand concepts you have trouble with. His quizzes and tests can be a bit more challenging than average, but also "fun" in Corbin's sense of the word and force you to extend concepts that you learned in class (or apply them a different way). Because of this, you'll understand physics much better than if you'd taken a class with just plug and chug problems on exams. Everything he tests on he covers in his lectures, so if you pay attention in class and do the homework problems you should do fine. The quiz averages for our class were around 50%, but Corbin curved generously at the end (well.. judging from my grade). If you do take Corbin, make sure you go over your lecture notes thoroughly; they'll really help for exams!

Took Corbin over summer for 1B. Everything about difficult midterms and EXTREMELY low curves is true; we're talking less than 30% every quiz.
I found Corbin frustrating. His lectures differ greatly from the book/ homework in that he only discusses extremely general equations, then expects the class to apply the equations to problems that come WAY out of left field.
Example: first week was on oscillators, simple masses on horizontal springs. The quiz involved a ROTATING circular mass, suspended by two springs, of varying force constants and distances. WHAT? Unless you remember specific 1A material involving torques, inertia, and disreguarding gravitational force, DONT EVEN TRY to start this problem, Corbin didnt teach the class enough to even begin this mess.
Unless you love forcing laughter at his jokes (which i'm sure many ucla students do) and kissing teacher ass with little to no dignity, you better at LEAST "be a master of" 1A before you take his course.
But overall, if you suck up enough and go to his office hours you'll def get a A-B (mainly because the curve is a joke)

He was one of the best professors i have had so far. Very enthusiastic and concerned. He does make the tests a but harder than most others professors out there but he also curves the class very generously. The lectures are amazing and if you take notes you will be fine. I was one of those people who didn't take notes. I attended about 50% of the class but still managed to get an A by cramming the night before. All tests have one question that comes straight from hw which mean f you do the hw you are guarantied 30/90 points on the midterms and 30/180 points on the final. Keep in mind that the average the first midterm is about 40/90 and the second one 50/90. So over all I think he wasnt as hard as everyone makes him seem like. You will enjoy his class no matter what.

Amazing Professor!
Physics 1B covers a lot of hard, yet interesting concepts.
If you really want to understand and have a firm grasp of these ideas
take Corbin.
Corbin's lectures are almost always very interesting because he likes to tell
anecdotes to explain concepts that may be confusing or boring.
In order to get an A, going to most of the lectures are mandatory
and going to his office hours and workshops will certainly help towards your final grade.
(Not because this is sucking up, but because these extra hours do really help)
His tests are challenging, but the grader is very generous with partial credits
If you have chance to take him for any physics class, go for it
but make sure to work hard and not procrastinate

Corbin is the BEST professor I had since I came to UCLA. He's an excellent lecturer. Although his material is challenging, he always explained everything crystal clear. He cares a lot about his students. His midterms and final are moderately hard, but good notes can help a lot. He tries to push you a little bit on the tests, which made you want to learn more (at least it made me learn more). He taught me how to approach a problem instead of just memorizing the boring formulas. If you really want to learn something in physics, definitely take him! go to lectures, take good notes, and go over his notes before exams, then you are good to go =)

Firstly, Corbin is very concerned about his students. He really wants them to understand the material and is very helpful
in office hours.(although it can get kinda crammed sometimes). He is also usually pretty friendly and easy to talk
to, especially so if you make an effort to communicate with him. Corbin is the type of professor that attempts to
really get to know his students, and he will definitely remember who you are if you go to his workshops or office hours.
However, occasionally he will give short, incomplete answers to your questions, but I suspect this is done to make you think more about the question yourself.

On to the teaching, Corbin is a very good lecturer. He excels at teaching students physical concepts and principles, and he presents the material in a very straightforward and accessible manner. I was able to understand everything very clearly and gain an fundamental understanding of most of the topics.

The tests. The tests were very challenging, and the means were generally pretty low (39/90 first midterm 52/90 second midterm). However, most of the questions were doable if you understood the concepts well and studied your notes thoroughly.
(Good notes are essential in this class!) Also, the graders were very generous in awarding partial credit, often awarding a few points for merely writing down relevant equations for a problem. His grading system is a little vague though, and he doesn't really assign any letter grades to the midterms. However, he insists that you will get an A if you can show him that you really understand the material and have "mastered" it.

Overall, Corbin is the best physics professor I've had so far at UCLA and I would definitely recommend him to anyone who genuinely wants to learn the material well.

Professor Corbin is amazing. Although some posts below mine deemed him as an incompetent professor, but he is one of the only professors at UCLA who cares. Don't get me wrong; I'm not one of the student who got perfect scores on his midterms. Both of my midterm scores were below average yet I would recommend him to ANYONE who is willing to get something out of a class at ucla. Yes, his tests are ridiculous, and yes, you will spend a couple nights worrying your life away about the upcoming midterms, but once you get to know him, you'll see why I got such mad respects for him. He is truly passionate about what he does and how it will affect his students.

If you do decide to take this class, be sure not to procrastinate because like other physics classes, the lectures will go by prettyyy quickly. Memorize his notes and do what he does and you'll be good to go.

Get to know him; you won't regret it.

Best professor at UCLA. His exams are pretty difficult, but with the curve taken into account, you'll probably still do well. The main point is that he teaches you the concepts and how to approach any given problem very well. Don't listen to people that tell you not to take him because he is hard. It's completely worth it. And there's a curve as in any other class. We all know he's hard. But you'll learn a lot more than you expect.

Brent is a great professor. His teaching style is unique and very effective. He gives weekly homework assignments which are optional, because nothing can prepare you for his exams. He gives two midterms and a final with extremely low curves, with the averages being around 30/90. However, you must study his notes and make sure to never skip class. Don't take this class if you can't afford to take a hit to your GPA, but you will learn a LOT.

Brent really knows what he teaches. His teaching style is particularly effective, because he moves through problems in a very logical method. He doesn't just finish a problem and move on, but he tries to understand the problem from the point of view of a student who is still in the process of trying to master the material.

Besides that, Brent is also very entertaining. He's pretty much a college student in the body of an old man. He's very approachable, and always willing to help.

While Brent is a professor who gives the appearance of being more difficult than other professors, if you put in the time and effort into his class, you can definitely get an A. Remember that the midterms, at minimum, are only a way of detecting your deficiencies. The final is the last test of how much you mastered the material. If you can do extremely well on the final, Brent will be more than happy to give you an A. You have to remember that his grading policy is that your grade will dictate how much you learned at the end of the year. That is, an A says you mastered the material. A B says you understand it well enough. A C says that you know enough to do all right in the next class.

People will recommend that you don't take Professor Corbin if you are concerned about your GPA. I think if you are open-minded enough about Physics and take a genuine interest in the Physics 1B topics, it will be a lot easier for you to get an A. This is definitely a class where you actually learn and not just sit, plug, and chug.