. He doesn't have the etiquettes a UC Professor should have. Be more accessible to students.
He was okay but not as good at explaining a lot of the concepts as Freund. Also he assigned us a lot of lecture videos to watch but they ended up being very redundant to the content he covers in lecture in person.
Every time I left lecture, I was unsure about what Geller wanted me to take away from it. The final for 6C was the hardest exam of my life. So many question types that were unlike anything we have seen before. Practice tests don't really help you. The Achieve homework is a nice grade buffer. Definitely take Freund if you can!
Honestly I'm not sure why Geller gets so much hate. I find him to be quite entertaining and his commentary in his lecture videos makes me laugh. He is a good professor and I feel like I've learned the most physics than the other two classes in the series. I strongly dislike physics but I will say that Geller definitely does keep me engaged.
Geller teaches in a conceptual way. The pro about this teaching style is you're likely to understand how the world works better. The con is that learning problem-solving that matters for MT's is done on your own time. He gives you all the tools though. Know how to do the BP's (which aren't a lot) by heart and look at "good-student" notes. (6.75/10)
Lots of homework which make up a lot of your grade which is super nice. Exams are hard but fair, if you keep up with the homework and do the practice problems he gives you will be fine. His lectures are super entertaining and interesting, always doing some fun demos.
I was placed into his class because the other sections were full and was a little nervous due to the other rate my professor ratings. However! Geller is my favorite teacher at UCSB so far, even as someone who isn't fond of physics. You will succeed if you understand problems from HW, textbook, and assigned practice problems (not rote memory).
His lectures are all conceptual and have nothing to do with calculations. After asking friends, I heard a majority of his questions are mathematical-based. In addition to his teaching, he also does not post any resources. His notes are from a student, not himself. And he does not provide any videos of himself explaining those mathematical problems.
This man is a king. No exams or final this quarter just quizzes and homework. Although online, lectures are as interesting as they are helpful. Geller is not only an extremely capable lecturer, but is overall just a nice, cool guy who cares about his students' success. I could not recommend him more, the best professor I've had at UCSB.
Nobody enjoyed this class at all. Long and boring lectures that are extremely off-topic. Barely any material is actually covered, only broad and off-topic discussions. Lots of "rambling" in a sense. Class was mostly empty. The final was extremely difficult and the average was very low compared to him praising 6C and saying how easy it was vs 6A & B
Geller is genuinely a horrible professor. Although you can tell he knows a lot about the topics and wants the students to be interested, his lectures are horrible. All he talks about is conceptual ideas when the exams were all math problems. Basically had to teach myself everything for the midterm and final. Do not take this class with him.
He's great, class was terrible.
Took his class for Physics 6A &C. Such a empathetic professor and very understanding of his students especially in this pandemic. He drops your lowest quiz/ hw & curves hw. I like how the quizzes arent worth majority of your grade. I used to dislike physics but Geller def made me like it a lot more.
Let me just say how extremely happy I took Geller after Freund. I had no choice since Freund didn't teach 6B in the Winter. &thank god he didn't, I love Geller! I admired Freund and heard how Geller can be "HARD". Not true! He is passionate and easy to listen too so you don't zone out too often in class. An amazing professor!
Geller is a really good lecturer, but you HAVE to go to lecture because he doesn't use slides. His classes were very conceptual and demo heavy (especially compared to Freund) so it can be tough to study with limited practice problems, but if you do sapling and go to lecture you should be fine. I thought his lectures were always really interesting
I got straight A's in Physics 6A and 6B, then ended up with a B- in Geller's physics 6C class. He's not a terrible lecturer, but doesn't do example problems in class, just explains concepts. Definitely wouldn't recommend for 6C if you have a choice. Prepare to spend time in the PSR trying to figure out everything he doesn't explain.
Geller's lectures are absolutely terrible, but you kinda feel the need to go anyway. Out of an entire quarter (TR lectures), he had three day's worth of iClicker. Doesn't teach, just talks about applications and astronomy. Also, he sounds like Bentley from the Sly games. Big oof.
Geller is an average professor. He is really passionate about physics which is great, but his lectures are very conceptual, and he doesn't cover much of the 'practical' stuff. The final only covered the concepts that he discussed in class, so just do problems to familiarize yourself with the equations and you'll be fine.
Lecture is mostly conceptual stuff that wont be test material, but still go for the equations and problems that he wants you to know. Practice hard problems and go to CLAS. Read the book. No curve or very little curve.
The test is much different from his class material.
I dislike physics but Geller was such a good teacher. He doesn't try to trick you. I strongly recommend doing book problems because they really help you prepare for the midterm and final.
After taking Freund for 6C, I found Geller's class to be more challenging - I had to put more effort into studying and actually knowing the material, rather than memorizing equations. However, Geller's passion for physics and science in general made the class interesting, and I didn't mind going to lecture. Don't forget to bring your i-clicker!
Geller was alright but kinda boring sometimes. He really cares about his students.
Best physics teacher I've ever had. He doesn't do flipped classroom like other teachers which is helpful and takes tons of questions and does a ton of examples to make sure you understand. He is really funny. Tests are very fair compared to other teachers-doesn't trick you and tells you how many questions of what topic will be on there. One midterm