ASTR 1210

Probably one of the easiest ways to satisfy your science credit at UVA. This was the easiest class of my semester and took hardly any of my time other than homework once a week and studying the night before his exams. His exam questions are easy considering the majority of them come straight from the homework (word for word) or in-class clicker questions. I would say attending lectures isn't even necessary to do well, but he gives you a participation grade based on how many clicker questions you answer over the semester. They aren't based on correct/incorrect basis though. Basically, just show up to the lectures and do your homework and you should be able to manage at least an A-. The fact that Murphy is a really nice guy and shows epic astronomy videos through out the semester is just a plus. I'd never major in astronomy, but his class definitely made me look at the night sky on my walks home a little more often.

I had always wanted to take astronomy during high school, but was never able to so I signed up for this class during college instead. It has been one of the best decisions I have made. Professor Murphy is an incredible professor and I am so glad that I had him. Not only is he engaging in lecture, he is very helpful during his office hours and will explain the concepts until you understand him. He really knows his materials and tries to make the class interesting by doing demonstrations, showing videos, and discussing current events about Astronomy. However, this class is not an easy A. There is one homework set due every Sunday night which can take between 30 minutes to 2 hours depending on the difficulty. Also, his tests are tricky because some of the questions are pretty easy and come from his lectures, but the other parts of the exam are specific questions from the textbook. Just study a few days before and read the textbook. It will have all the information you need. Again, I highly recommend this class and Professor Murphy. He will really teach you about the solar system and phenomenons on earth. He is the best!

Murphy is a great professor who really enjoys the subject. This class has lots of easy points if you go to lecture, do both labs before deadlines, and try on homework. However, the quizzes are actually pretty hard so be really prepared on quiz day. I would recommend this class to anyone who likes astronomy.

Murphy is a great guy. He is passionate about the subject and attempts to be very engaging. The textbook is pretty good but make sure you do the homework because it gives you a good sense about what will be on tests.

The main gripe I had with this class was how unnecessarily detailed the test questions were and how much semantics were involved. And as great a professor Murphy is, the material was so dry that I probably would have dozed off in class most of the time if it weren't for my friend being there and having to answer Learning Catalytics questions.

Coming from the E-school, this class was a very nice break. Murphy is wonderful and very straightforward. He doesn't try to make the class tricky. The class is fairly common sense, and if you do the homework without using Google, pay attention in class, and review Learning Catalytics and do the concept quizzes and reading checks before each quiz, you'll do fine. This was my "easy" class, so I didn't put as much effort in as I should have but managed an A- while taking the other grueling E-school first semester classes.

Murphy is a great guy and great teacher. Would definitely recommend this class for anyone who needs to get the science requirement done or is just interested in acquiring some cool fun facts. This was my favorite class at UVA, Murphy does a great job keeping you engaged and interested while explaining every concept very well. If you do the practice tests in Mastering Astronomy and pay attention in lecture you'll be set to get an A or a B, reading the textbook will help you get the two or three randomly specific questions on the test but isn't necessarily necessary since he curves and lectures straight out of the book.

Class is very hard to get an A in. Few midterms that you must do well on to get a good grade. Going to class is pointless because he just reads from powerpoints that are posted to Collab. Most questions are taken straight from the homework.

The professor was great and the course was very interesting. There is a weekly homework assignment that you are allowed to do with other people, and there a three quizzes along with the final. He is really good at lecturing, so it feels like you don't have to do any of the readings but you do. He takes questions from the readings and the homework, so as long as you do those and go to class it's pretty easy to get a good grade.

Great course very interesting with a fantastic professor! Ed is extremely passionate and his lectures are informative however the material is straight forward and not too challenging honestly took 5 pages of notes all semester and started reading the night before each "quiz" or exam. He does throw a couple curveballs on each examination so it is important to thoroughly understand but if you are willing to put in the proper effort an A or A- is easily attainable.