MATH 142
Mathematical Modeling
Description: Lecture, three hours; discussion, one hour. Requisites: courses 32B, 33B. Introduction to fundamental principles and spirit of applied mathematics. Emphasis on manner in which mathematical models are constructed for physical problems. Illustrations from many fields of endeavor, such as physical sciences, biology, economics, and traffic dynamics.
Units: 4.0
Units: 4.0
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Most Helpful Review
Summer 2026 - Professor Johnson is the most unhelpful, condescending, and hypocritical person I've ever met. The lecture notes were extremely disorganized and often did little to clarify the material. There were no practice exams, and the homework was not representative of the exams, which made it very difficult to know how to prepare effectively. Multiple students reached out to ask how she recommended preparing for the exams because they genuinely wanted to improve in the class, but these questions were largely ignored. Her explanation for not providing practice exams was essentially that she did not want to create additional questions beyond those used on the actual exams. I found this extremely frustrating and lazy, especially when students were actively asking for additional resources and guidance so they could succeed. Her attitude toward students who could not attend lectures live was also particularly disappointing. She made passive-aggressive comments during lectures and would sometimes stop the recordings before answering questions at the end, seemingly because students watching the recordings had not attended live. This felt like an unfair assumption that students who did not attend synchronously were somehow less engaged or less deserving of access to the full lecture. There are many legitimate reasons a student may be unable to attend live. I worked two jobs to support myself during the course, so attending every lecture live was not always possible, but I consistently made the effort to watch the recordings and keep up with the material. Other students may have work or family obligations or may even be participating from different time zones. Not attending a lecture live does not mean that a student does not care about the course, and I found the apparent assumption otherwise both unfair and dismissive. I also found some of her policies hypocritical. She complained about having to grade homework while she had a cold and explained that this was why grading was taking longer, yet students who were sick were not given the same flexibility with deadlines. Overall, I felt there was very little effort to support students who were struggling but genuinely trying to improve, and interactions with her often came across as dismissive and condescending.
Summer 2026 - Professor Johnson is the most unhelpful, condescending, and hypocritical person I've ever met. The lecture notes were extremely disorganized and often did little to clarify the material. There were no practice exams, and the homework was not representative of the exams, which made it very difficult to know how to prepare effectively. Multiple students reached out to ask how she recommended preparing for the exams because they genuinely wanted to improve in the class, but these questions were largely ignored. Her explanation for not providing practice exams was essentially that she did not want to create additional questions beyond those used on the actual exams. I found this extremely frustrating and lazy, especially when students were actively asking for additional resources and guidance so they could succeed. Her attitude toward students who could not attend lectures live was also particularly disappointing. She made passive-aggressive comments during lectures and would sometimes stop the recordings before answering questions at the end, seemingly because students watching the recordings had not attended live. This felt like an unfair assumption that students who did not attend synchronously were somehow less engaged or less deserving of access to the full lecture. There are many legitimate reasons a student may be unable to attend live. I worked two jobs to support myself during the course, so attending every lecture live was not always possible, but I consistently made the effort to watch the recordings and keep up with the material. Other students may have work or family obligations or may even be participating from different time zones. Not attending a lecture live does not mean that a student does not care about the course, and I found the apparent assumption otherwise both unfair and dismissive. I also found some of her policies hypocritical. She complained about having to grade homework while she had a cold and explained that this was why grading was taking longer, yet students who were sick were not given the same flexibility with deadlines. Overall, I felt there was very little effort to support students who were struggling but genuinely trying to improve, and interactions with her often came across as dismissive and condescending.
Most Helpful Review
Spring 2016 - Professor Kunze is probably one of the worst professors i've had in my life but that doesn't mean you will have a bad experience with her. I made a big mistake participating in class which I think lead to her being really unhelpful when I asked her questions during office hours. After initial enthusiasm for the subject matter I lost complete interest after a bad experience I had with her during office hours. Perhaps she was having a long day and was tired but that really isn't my problem. If she likes you she will have patience dealing with you and perhaps even help you attain an internship. In all honesty, I think most students had a positive experience with her but I didn't.
Spring 2016 - Professor Kunze is probably one of the worst professors i've had in my life but that doesn't mean you will have a bad experience with her. I made a big mistake participating in class which I think lead to her being really unhelpful when I asked her questions during office hours. After initial enthusiasm for the subject matter I lost complete interest after a bad experience I had with her during office hours. Perhaps she was having a long day and was tired but that really isn't my problem. If she likes you she will have patience dealing with you and perhaps even help you attain an internship. In all honesty, I think most students had a positive experience with her but I didn't.
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Most Helpful Review
Summer 2017 - If you want to get easy As, please do not choose Math142!!!! Mikel assumes that a score of 55% of the final exam to be excellent, so you will find how hard for you to outshine in this course. However, you will learn a lot from this course if you are not a Math major, because this course involves considerable knowledge of calculus, ODE, PDE and linear algebra, and you will thrive to master them. Besides, make sure that you know quite a lot about physics, because this course will base many of its models on physics world, which COULD be harsh if you have never taken a similar course before. All in all, Mikel is dedicated to this course though it seems that he is still lack in experience, and the TA Xu Chen is sooooooooooooo cute :)
Summer 2017 - If you want to get easy As, please do not choose Math142!!!! Mikel assumes that a score of 55% of the final exam to be excellent, so you will find how hard for you to outshine in this course. However, you will learn a lot from this course if you are not a Math major, because this course involves considerable knowledge of calculus, ODE, PDE and linear algebra, and you will thrive to master them. Besides, make sure that you know quite a lot about physics, because this course will base many of its models on physics world, which COULD be harsh if you have never taken a similar course before. All in all, Mikel is dedicated to this course though it seems that he is still lack in experience, and the TA Xu Chen is sooooooooooooo cute :)
Most Helpful Review
Fall 2016 - This review is for Math 32B, and not for Math 142. Professor Lombardo, in all honesty, is not a very good professor. She is new teaching here, and has a really heavy Italian accent. In addition, she writes really small on the blackboard, and didn't even know how to use the blackboards (i.e. moving one board up to the top, and sliding the next clean board to write on). Her teaching style is severely lacking, and her lectures provide no clarity in helping students understand the topics. I have heard similar reviews from other students, and it is a shame that I have to take this class with her, as her lecture is the only one that fits my schedule.
Fall 2016 - This review is for Math 32B, and not for Math 142. Professor Lombardo, in all honesty, is not a very good professor. She is new teaching here, and has a really heavy Italian accent. In addition, she writes really small on the blackboard, and didn't even know how to use the blackboards (i.e. moving one board up to the top, and sliding the next clean board to write on). Her teaching style is severely lacking, and her lectures provide no clarity in helping students understand the topics. I have heard similar reviews from other students, and it is a shame that I have to take this class with her, as her lecture is the only one that fits my schedule.
2 of 5
