Professor
Jonathan Marcot
Most Helpful Review
Winter 2020 - Overall, this class was tougher than LS7A and many of my friends who got an A in LS7A would agree. The grade distribution might contradict, but the tests were harder. Marcot was an alright professor. His review session and office hours weren't as good as Kane's. Often times when we ask him a hypothetical question, he would say, "I don't know. I would need more information." However, Kane always answered our hypothetical questions, when I went to her review sessions. Also, I would choose a different professor, like Kane, but it doesn't really matter since the class is standardized and your grade depends on how well you know the material. The labs are very useless as they don't pertain to the exams. They were basically long LS7A discussions. Very boring. CLC hours were the most beneficial. If lab was like CLC hours, then it would've been worth it. The first midterm was rough. Apparently, it is either the first or second midterm that is tough (after talking to people who previously took the course), but it doesn't matter since the hard midterm is always about Pedigrees. We barely had any time to finish, and it felt like a rush since we only had around 5 minutes left to double-check. The second midterm was way easier with almost an hour left. The Final was online due to COVID-19 and it was hard. Somehow, I managed to pull off an A, but one mistake I made was coming into LS7B with the mindset that LS7B would be a breeze. As a tip, you should understand how to do pedigrees very well and quickly. Go online and find examples, since they do not provide you with enough practice material. Use the clicker questions and practice exam questions as "practice tests" and do them after you review every chapter. Good luck and study hard!
Winter 2020 - Overall, this class was tougher than LS7A and many of my friends who got an A in LS7A would agree. The grade distribution might contradict, but the tests were harder. Marcot was an alright professor. His review session and office hours weren't as good as Kane's. Often times when we ask him a hypothetical question, he would say, "I don't know. I would need more information." However, Kane always answered our hypothetical questions, when I went to her review sessions. Also, I would choose a different professor, like Kane, but it doesn't really matter since the class is standardized and your grade depends on how well you know the material. The labs are very useless as they don't pertain to the exams. They were basically long LS7A discussions. Very boring. CLC hours were the most beneficial. If lab was like CLC hours, then it would've been worth it. The first midterm was rough. Apparently, it is either the first or second midterm that is tough (after talking to people who previously took the course), but it doesn't matter since the hard midterm is always about Pedigrees. We barely had any time to finish, and it felt like a rush since we only had around 5 minutes left to double-check. The second midterm was way easier with almost an hour left. The Final was online due to COVID-19 and it was hard. Somehow, I managed to pull off an A, but one mistake I made was coming into LS7B with the mindset that LS7B would be a breeze. As a tip, you should understand how to do pedigrees very well and quickly. Go online and find examples, since they do not provide you with enough practice material. Use the clicker questions and practice exam questions as "practice tests" and do them after you review every chapter. Good luck and study hard!
AD
Most Helpful Review
Winter 2022 - Took this class during Winter 2022. I really liked this class even though mid-quarter we transitioned to in-person. The lecture wasn't mandatory and the professor was very lenient. We went to La Brea Tar pits and Natural History Museum (very cool). You can tell he's really passionate about fossils and the professor is really nice and will happily explain basic questions. Pros: - Midterm and Final not hard to study for (study the slides) - Field trips! - Professor very nice - Discussion assignments were interesting Cons: - Instructions a little unclear for the project (worth 100 pts) Overall, I would recommend this class. Very easy to get an A- without trying.
Winter 2022 - Took this class during Winter 2022. I really liked this class even though mid-quarter we transitioned to in-person. The lecture wasn't mandatory and the professor was very lenient. We went to La Brea Tar pits and Natural History Museum (very cool). You can tell he's really passionate about fossils and the professor is really nice and will happily explain basic questions. Pros: - Midterm and Final not hard to study for (study the slides) - Field trips! - Professor very nice - Discussion assignments were interesting Cons: - Instructions a little unclear for the project (worth 100 pts) Overall, I would recommend this class. Very easy to get an A- without trying.