Dr. Gainer is a super nice guy who has pretty useful lectures and is available for help if you need it. This class was not easy, but I think the difficulty of all exams was very reasonable. I HIGHLY recommend the book problems for practice! Labs themselves are TA dependent, but most of the TAs want you to succeed. I really enjoyed this class.

Good luck. Exams are hard. If you have the time, talk to a TA as much as possible.

Gainer has archaic standards, requiring students to write in pen and specifically use a composition style notebook. He disallows graphing calculators on his tests forcing many students to scramble to get a scientific calculator. The final was terribly written having a significant portion of its questions on content from one lecture.

Taking this class made me realize my life's just a misery.

It was not the hardest class in ucsb but the worst. I didn't realize there was a practical test until the last experiment. Prof Gainer didn't mentioned it in syllabus. Also, the quizzes were unfair and were made by TAs. Always one harder and one easier version. Don't take it unless you are required. Good luck.

6AL and 6BL took a lot of effort and lab reports took forever, but also some of the most interesting, fulfilling, and rewarding content and classes I have EVER taken. Everything Gainer says really clicks. He's a great lecturer and amazing person to ask questions to. Absolutely adored him and ended up really loving these labs.

Lab reports/quizzes are all graded by the TAs. He was a good lecturer in 6AL, only thing he does in 6BL is essentially make the final. Final is VERY difficult and will probably bring your letter grade down by one (happened to me and all my friends). Study for the final create a routine for the class.

y'know what? smash.

I love this professor. He is so helpful in office hours and will help with lab reports and study for the quizzes. But this class takes a lot of time and effort which is equivalent to what I feel like is at least 2 hard STEM courses so plan your schedule accordingly. Concepts are way more interesting than in 6AL. Lab reports are graded harder.

Gainer was a good lecturer overall and explained concepts pretty clearly. The midterms were pretty fair and doable, but the final is a lot trickier and harder and basically determines your grade, so make sure to study a lot for it. Lectures are mandatory and it's pretty pard to catch up if you've missed one

Definitely feels like a heavier class than other lab I've taken. You have to go to lecture or you will be soooo lost. A lot of grading depends on what TA you get but overall if you put in the work it's doable.

Gainer's classes can be challenging, but engaging with the material and using study tools like unstuck study can help you succeed. The final is tough, so focus on the lab reports and quizzes. Overall, a worthwhile class if you put in the effort.