I'm an English major and I was actually sad when I had to miss a lecture. Enough said.

Professor Robinson is enthusiastic in all that he teachers. This class has been the most enjoyable that I've had thus far. He's very energetic in what he is teaching-- making you enjoy the class a whole lot. The reading wasn't much, just the course reader and The Cobra Event, both were good easy reads. GREAT lectures. Take good notes and memorize specifics. I learned a lot of interesting things... scary even. Great class to take with this professor.

Robinson is a good professor. His class is enjoyable and very interesting. Overall I enjoyed it. The only thing I did not like was that he pushed a lot of his liberal political views in the class. When talking about War in Iraq, he took quotes out of context. He either was not informed or chose to leave information out. For example, he claimed that they never found bunkers under Sadaam Hussein's palace when after we had bombed Baghdad, the media had actually filmed the insides of the bunkers. He also quoted Hans Blix saying that the U.N. was able to inspect everything they wanted to before the U.S. invaded. What is wrong with this is that the U.N. did not even care to really search for weapons because most of it's members were involved in the Oil for Food scandal and had ties with Hussein. He made no mention of how Hussein had gassed his own people and how he repetedly ignored all of the U.N. resolutions. What's sad is that people adore this guy and clapped after the last lecture because they most likely don't watch the news and don't realize that this guy doesn't always tell you the truth.

Dr. Robinson is one of the best, if not the best professors I have ever had. I'm an Econ major who is only moderately interested in Microbiology. However, the way Dr. Robinson taught, it was hard not to be interested in the material. On a personal level, he is the nicest "people person" professor I have ever had. Unlike most professors who cut you short when you are talking to them, you will find you will be forced to cut him short because he will talk with you for hours after class if you have the time. If you study right (i.e. it's a multiple choice test, think about the type of questions that can be tested on a multiple choice test) and go to class mostly everyday, you can get an 'A' easily. I'll even let you in on a little secret: I didn't read the book because he told us only 3 - 4 questions were going to be on the final. Instead I googled for some reviews and I'm pretty sure I got 2 - 3 of the questions right. I probably spent 2 hours outside of class studying for both the midterm and final, and I got the grade I hoped for.

This class was the coolest class I have taken at UCLA. This professor is one of the best profs I have ever had too. The way he gets so passionate about microorganisms is really spellbinding. The exams were multiple choice and not hard given that you study a decent amount. The assignments consisted of some boring readings from the book (not worth too much but were tested in the exams) and reading a book called The Cobra Event (really good book). Not only is the class easy, but its fun and it is really interesting because it talks about bioterrorism and microbial warfare. Scary stuff. I got an A and totally recommend this class and this prof for ANYBODY.

He is a very passionate and enthusiastic teacher, which makes lectures more interesting. He also uses a lot of powerpoint slides, films, pictures, and brings in visual aids for lectures. Reading load is not heavy and you get to read some great novels. You learn a lot of interesting information in this class, but that makes it hard to narrow down what will be on the exam. His two exams, which make up your final grade (midterm and final), tend to ask some very specific questions. Although the subject matter maybe really interesting, you are overloaded with tons of information. He does not make it easier for you to study for the exam by passing out review packets, so you're on your own to memorize every minute detail of the course. So don't take this class if you are looking for an easy A, because you will have to work hard for a good grade. I still, however, recommend him and his class especially if you are interested in the subject matter. Overall he's a great professor, but difficult tests.

Grade gotten for course: C+
DOOD. that grade above just does not do justice to my intelligence. Anyway, to echo comments posted on 3/23/2003, DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS if YOU'RE ONLY LOOKING FOR AN EASY CLASS TO BOOST UR GPA. This class definitely is not the easy class u'r looking for. Robinson is very funny and passionate about the topic, but b/c the topic is so easy that the exams are littered with minute details from lecture notes, the book, the novel, and his online notes. The midterm (100pts) and final (150pts) [what the grade for course is based on] are extremely difficult b/c of questions asking for trivial details. What a shame. Great professor, but crappy tests; and therefore sucky class. What a shame. Don't take this class unless u have an awesome memory.

Bioterrorism and Emerging Infections is the name of the course. Sounds interesting enough, and it is. Professor Robinson lectures well. He's also a funny guy, bringing props (like gas masks) to class and crouching or sitting down on stage every now and again. He applies the material well to what's going on in the world, given the war and all. "The Cobra Event" was also a good read, since I don't usually read bestsellers let alone science related ones.

As a north campus major who despises multiple choice, I wasn't fond of his tests. He tests details that I would have never thought to remember while studying (namely number-related facts rather than core concepts), making some of his questions rather hard (for me) and others too easy. Generally though, they are straightforward and if you've done the reading, you should do fine. I would not, however, qualify this class as "easy," in terms of getting an A. I would recommend taking another class if you want that, unless you want to take this one as a GE P/NP. In the latter case, I would certainly recommend Robinson and this course.

Oh, and the videos were good too, when they worked.

GREAT CLASS. Everything we learned was interesting and applied to the real world. I looked forward to taking it everyday. It is not a difficult course. Don't be fooled by those who said to take it P/NP or who say it is hard. As long as you study you should get at least a B. That means, study his online notes mainly and take good lecture notes because he uses questions on the midterm and final from lecture. The Cobra Event was excellent; I could not put it down. Take this class if you can and you won't regret it. Those people who had negative experiences probably didn't study and well, we are at UCLA and that is usually a requirement to do well.
Class rating: A+ !

I don't know why people keep on saying this was a hard class and to take it Pass/No Pass. Just study and you should get higher than a B. But, make sure you really study his online notes and that you do take good notes from lecture, because there are at least 5 multiple choice questions and 2 fill ins (only on the final) that are straight from lecture. Professor Robinson was a great lecturer and I will truly miss this class. Every day had new topics and information that was really interesting and pertinent to our lives-especially with the war situation. DO take this class, and it is pretty easy. I got an A on the midterm and a B on the final and ended up with an A- in the class. The people who posted before made me worry about this class and to take it P/NP and it is a good thing I didn't listen to them. This class WILL boost your GPA, as long as you study and attend lecture (which would be a huge mistake if you didn't because Micro 12 is one of the few good courses at UCLA).
Too bad this class is only offered twice-in the Winter and Summer.