I’m more interested in cellular/molecular biology, but I was pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed this class. Professor Cox is somewhat dull but his powerpoint slides are the best slides I’ve ever seen. For some people, going to lectures may not be mandatory, although I still attended because recording lectures is helpful for me and clicker participation gives you 1% bonus. Exams were challenging but as long as you have a deep understanding of the content and examples, they are definitely doable. Professor Brodie’s lecturing style is a little more interesting and I’d say the content that he teaches is a bit more straightforward. His exams were a little more challenging than Professor Cox’s but still doable in my opinion. Both professors are very knowledgeable and passionate about the subject matter which is refreshing. Overall, this is an excellent course and I learned a lot of useful information.

Don’t buy the textbook, you won’t need to read it. Go to class and pay attention. You will get 1 point added to your course grade for attendance (measured by iClicker, you can afford to miss only a couple of lectures). Cox teaches first half, Brodie teaches second half. Cox is an okay lecturer and has straightforward exams. Brodie is a good lecturer but has hard, very ambiguous exams (I did worse on them DESPITE them actually being open note due to corona). No homework.

This is a pretty standard bio class and I think the school re-vamped it after last semester so it isn't there to "trick you" anymore. I found professor Cox to be passionate about what he was talking about and made lectures enjoyable. If you're taking this class you've probably been through way worse in the bio department and you will hopefully be able to appreciate these professors who just like biology and are here to teach us. To do well I'd say review the powerpoints about a week early, go through the Piazza (which I didn't know what piazza was until exam 3), use your book as a reference but you definitely don't need to do the assigned readings. Some of my classmates recorded the lecture but honestly I don't think it's necessary. This is one of those classes where you stand out based on your test-taking abilities rather than your actual knowledge. I hope you're a better test taker than me!