I was a total dinosaur kid in elementary school so this was the perfect science ge to take, especially since I'm really really really bad at science. Labs were really fun since we just looked at fossils and pictures of dinosaurs. The midterm and final were pretty easy as well, especially since they were online (although this might have been because of covid idk). We also had weekly online quizzes with unlimited retakes. Honestly I didn't need the textbook, just go to lecture! Professor Brown is really cool too, and we got to learn about her work with the La Brea Tar Pits!

Compared to the other professors in this class, Dr. Brown just does not compare. Her slides are not clear and the review questions she posts makes it hard to follow along. She word vomits and makes it hard for the students to take in the information she's supposed to be teaching.

I really love this class, but Doctor Brown is just not the clearest with her lectures at times. This does not mean you shouldn't take the class-- the class is fantastic. Take it!

Overall, this cluster is a great option for non-stem majors looking to know out their science GEs, however that didn't mean it was a walk in the park. This course is split into three subsections, one per quarter, because it is a year-long course. Professor Brown began instruction in winter quarter, and though she was evidently very educated and passionate, I found her lectures to be somewhat dull and kind of boring. Pro tip: how well you perform in this class honestly has nothing to do with the professor and everything to do with which TA you have. Lastly, I will say that the biweekly quizzes are somewhat difficult, but this section of the course, Cluster 70B, is significantly easier in workload, clarity, and overall easiness than Cluster 70A.

good lecturer, annoying pet bird

Okay so this class did not dissapoint. I loved it from begining to end. Professor Brown is an awsome lecturer, though sometimes she does gove a lot of information and goes through it pretty quickly. Regardless, learning about dinosaurs and what actually qualifies as one in more detail is pretty freaking awsome. Before every lecture started she'd play a scene from the Land Before Time or from the Jurassic Park/World movies. I also really enjoyed the labs and how at the very first lab she took us on a walk around campus to mirror a timline of ancient life on earth. There was a lot of information to sort through, but I'd take this class again. She was also very helpful to answer questions during office hours and broke down any concepts I had issues with. After class if something is bothering you from lectures or your confused don't be afraid to go up to her and ask. She'll definitely answer your question.

BEST CLASS I HAVE EVER TAKEN AT UCLA. Take this at all costs! This class was absolutely fascinating. Labs were like group projects where you got to analyze real dinosaur bones! The workload of the class was easy and our midterm and final was open note. I wish i could untake the class so i can take it again. I went to see Jurassic World after the class and I could name every dinosaur and say facts about each! Also, Professor Brown is freaking HILARIOUS. She had us all laughing our heads off.

This is a great course for a science GE. You certainly learn a lot about dinosaurs and their relatives- species, anatomy, ecology, etc. Brown is a pretty good professor. Her lectures are easy to follow and she presents information clearly. Grading is fair and is based on weekly reading quizzes, labs, lab quizzes, a midterm, and a final. Quizzes can be done without the readings, but the two books she assigns are very insightful for the course so I recommend reading them. Labs are interesting but can be tough. The midterm and final require studying- in my opinion, the midterm was a lot harder than the final. All in all, a good GE, especially for non-STEM majors.

I thought that this class was great overall. Professor Brown was super accommodating and friendly during Covid times since our midterm and final were all online. The only thing is that she talks pretty fast during lectures, so it can be a little difficult to keep up with her while writing notes. However, she posts her lectures on Canvas and the slides, so I wouldn't worry about that aspect. The midterm and the final were pretty fair, but I felt like I got lucky with the tests being online because some of the questions were slightly difficult if you did not study. With that being said, the final/midterm will most likely be in-person after the spring 2022 quarter, so keep that in mind.

The labs were very easy and the grading was extremely generous. Shoutout to my TA Leslie!!! She was super sweet, kept the labs super engaging, and helped us every step of the way. She definitely made this more of a fun class rather than a GE you have to mindlessly take. The lab quizzes were straightforward since Dr.Brown let us use the lab answer keys to answer questions and they were 5 questions/multiple choice. There are also readings, but to be honest, I never read anything and still got an A at the end of the quarter. Overall, I would recommend taking this class because of the interesting content, friendly professor, and chill TAs. However, if the exams are in person, make sure to really study!

Prof. Brown was so cool! This class is a great GE. It's definitely worth taking if you're trying to fulfill a lab requirement, and the material was super interesting.