MATH 31B
Integration and Infinite Series
Description: Lecture, three hours; discussion, one hour. Requisite: course 31A with grade of C- or better. Not open for credit to students with credit for course 3B. Transcendental functions; methods and applications of integration; sequences and series. P/NP or letter grading.
Units: 4.0
Units: 4.0
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Most Helpful Review
Fall 2023 - I love Linfeng Li. He’s a super cool and funny guy. Only problems with lecture are his accent can be a bit rough to understand and he tends to copy the textbook for the most part (though he’ll try to answer any questions). The weekly homework’s tend to be pretty short, and the quizzes are extremely easy (there are three during discussion weeks 3 6 and 9). The midterms were rough for me as I made a small mistake on each one that really messed up my score. He was accommodating and gave me a few points back after I explained myself but I ended up dropping that one anyways(he can drop your lowest midterm and increase the weight of the final). The final was extremely fair and very similar to resources he provided in the weeks leading up to it. Everyone I know who prepared well did well on the final, so don’t be disheartened if the midterms are a bit rough. Live Love Lifeng
Fall 2023 - I love Linfeng Li. He’s a super cool and funny guy. Only problems with lecture are his accent can be a bit rough to understand and he tends to copy the textbook for the most part (though he’ll try to answer any questions). The weekly homework’s tend to be pretty short, and the quizzes are extremely easy (there are three during discussion weeks 3 6 and 9). The midterms were rough for me as I made a small mistake on each one that really messed up my score. He was accommodating and gave me a few points back after I explained myself but I ended up dropping that one anyways(he can drop your lowest midterm and increase the weight of the final). The final was extremely fair and very similar to resources he provided in the weeks leading up to it. Everyone I know who prepared well did well on the final, so don’t be disheartened if the midterms are a bit rough. Live Love Lifeng
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Most Helpful Review
Average professor. Definitely not the best you will ever have but also not the worst. Got a B+ in the class. Selling the book for this class, Single Variable Calculus by Jon Rogawski, Second Ed. used for Math 31A and 31B. E-mail me at ************* if you're interested. I also have the solutions manual which I'll include in the purchase. I don't go to ucsd, I go ucla, I just like to use my ucsd email for convenience.
Average professor. Definitely not the best you will ever have but also not the worst. Got a B+ in the class. Selling the book for this class, Single Variable Calculus by Jon Rogawski, Second Ed. used for Math 31A and 31B. E-mail me at ************* if you're interested. I also have the solutions manual which I'll include in the purchase. I don't go to ucsd, I go ucla, I just like to use my ucsd email for convenience.
Most Helpful Review
Winter 2021 - I thought he was okay. I could feel that he tries to explain things, but a lot of the time unsuccessfully. He always posts hw late which makes it difficult to plan ahead. Apparently he never responds to emails as well. And if it hadn't been for recorded lectures, my ESL skills wouldn't have been able to understand his accent (which is my fault, but look out for that). Personally I didn't find his test to be that difficult, but he does shove in one question (or two in the final) where you can't solve it straightforwardly and need to do some shit to it first. The grading was also quite annoying, you could clearly show that you understand the materials (and have the correct answer) but still get a B or lower because you failed to clarify your steps. I figured that out after the first midterm so just adapt to that and it'd be good. I think personally I understood the materials well enough that none of these things were really deal breaker for me. But I thought the final was much more difficult than the midterms unlike the majority, so there's that.
Winter 2021 - I thought he was okay. I could feel that he tries to explain things, but a lot of the time unsuccessfully. He always posts hw late which makes it difficult to plan ahead. Apparently he never responds to emails as well. And if it hadn't been for recorded lectures, my ESL skills wouldn't have been able to understand his accent (which is my fault, but look out for that). Personally I didn't find his test to be that difficult, but he does shove in one question (or two in the final) where you can't solve it straightforwardly and need to do some shit to it first. The grading was also quite annoying, you could clearly show that you understand the materials (and have the correct answer) but still get a B or lower because you failed to clarify your steps. I figured that out after the first midterm so just adapt to that and it'd be good. I think personally I understood the materials well enough that none of these things were really deal breaker for me. But I thought the final was much more difficult than the midterms unlike the majority, so there's that.
Most Helpful Review
Manolescu was the most endearing professor I had all year. He's incredibly knowledgeable and will make you smile a lot in lecture with his little mannerisms and jokes. Super approachable. One thing I would recommend to incoming freshmen is to take this class very seriously, especially if you didn't take Calc BC in high school. I made the mistake of putting off any and all studying until the night before section every single week. Even though I got an A on all the quizzes, this was a really bad habit for math that I hadn't seen at all before coming here. The first midterm was a disaster, but the good thing is that he drops one of them if you do better on the other one. Just make sure not to make stupid little mistakes! That killed my grade without a doubt and I ended up getting a C+ on a test that I completely knew how to do. For the final, memorize the shit out of the power series! Know what they look like! I only memorized how to derive them, which was a huge waste of time on the final. You will need all three hours and you will probably walk out of there feeling like you were assaulted. I managed a B- in the class, but the moral is TAKE THIS CLASS SERIOUSLY. It's very doable if you're willing to put in work. Don't think you can get away with high school habits, because 31B is honestly one of the hardest classes you can take here.
Manolescu was the most endearing professor I had all year. He's incredibly knowledgeable and will make you smile a lot in lecture with his little mannerisms and jokes. Super approachable. One thing I would recommend to incoming freshmen is to take this class very seriously, especially if you didn't take Calc BC in high school. I made the mistake of putting off any and all studying until the night before section every single week. Even though I got an A on all the quizzes, this was a really bad habit for math that I hadn't seen at all before coming here. The first midterm was a disaster, but the good thing is that he drops one of them if you do better on the other one. Just make sure not to make stupid little mistakes! That killed my grade without a doubt and I ended up getting a C+ on a test that I completely knew how to do. For the final, memorize the shit out of the power series! Know what they look like! I only memorized how to derive them, which was a huge waste of time on the final. You will need all three hours and you will probably walk out of there feeling like you were assaulted. I managed a B- in the class, but the moral is TAKE THIS CLASS SERIOUSLY. It's very doable if you're willing to put in work. Don't think you can get away with high school habits, because 31B is honestly one of the hardest classes you can take here.
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Most Helpful Review
Winter 2020 - Honestly, I don't understand why people give this guy bad reviews. He's a great teacher and is really good at explaining concepts as well as example questions. I would definitely take him again. The homework he gave wass very well-tied to the stuff he was teaching in class and they are a really good indicator of what you should expect for his midterms and finals. He paced his class really well so it's not too fast or too slow for you. He's a funny guy as well, without having to try hard of course. This is one of the most chill class I have had, not because it was too easy, but because everything is so well-planned that I could literally trust this guy to deliver the best. My TA, Tim, is also a cool dude. So great at explaining concepts and helping us understand the homework assigned. His notes are lit too. If he's teaching again, be sure to take him as your TA. Extremely helpful and a great guy.
Winter 2020 - Honestly, I don't understand why people give this guy bad reviews. He's a great teacher and is really good at explaining concepts as well as example questions. I would definitely take him again. The homework he gave wass very well-tied to the stuff he was teaching in class and they are a really good indicator of what you should expect for his midterms and finals. He paced his class really well so it's not too fast or too slow for you. He's a funny guy as well, without having to try hard of course. This is one of the most chill class I have had, not because it was too easy, but because everything is so well-planned that I could literally trust this guy to deliver the best. My TA, Tim, is also a cool dude. So great at explaining concepts and helping us understand the homework assigned. His notes are lit too. If he's teaching again, be sure to take him as your TA. Extremely helpful and a great guy.
Most Helpful Review
Spring 2022 - I had a really hard time in this class. Lectures were spent almost solely on practice problems, but Prof. Marks often introduced new concepts, notation and terminology without explanation which made following along really challenging. The difficulty of our homework problems didn't seem to match up with the content we covered in class, and our weekly assignments were a struggle to get through. Our exams - two tests throughout the quarter and the final - were extremely hard to understand conceptually; thankfully, before each exam we were given a practice test, so the only way I was able to pass the exams was by repeating homework/practice exam problems over and over until I had memorized the steps, rather than actually understanding the content. I often asked for help after lecture/in office hours, but Prof. Marks generally seemed annoyed or uninterested which made seeking help a lot more intimidating. Covid specific; alternative exams options weren't offered, so if a student tested positive for Covid the week before/of the final, they were given an Incomplete in the class and would be forced to take the final in a following quarter after already having taken and put effort into the class for 10 weeks. It put sick students at a disadvantage and seemed unfair given that students in other classes were provided with accommodations.
Spring 2022 - I had a really hard time in this class. Lectures were spent almost solely on practice problems, but Prof. Marks often introduced new concepts, notation and terminology without explanation which made following along really challenging. The difficulty of our homework problems didn't seem to match up with the content we covered in class, and our weekly assignments were a struggle to get through. Our exams - two tests throughout the quarter and the final - were extremely hard to understand conceptually; thankfully, before each exam we were given a practice test, so the only way I was able to pass the exams was by repeating homework/practice exam problems over and over until I had memorized the steps, rather than actually understanding the content. I often asked for help after lecture/in office hours, but Prof. Marks generally seemed annoyed or uninterested which made seeking help a lot more intimidating. Covid specific; alternative exams options weren't offered, so if a student tested positive for Covid the week before/of the final, they were given an Incomplete in the class and would be forced to take the final in a following quarter after already having taken and put effort into the class for 10 weeks. It put sick students at a disadvantage and seemed unfair given that students in other classes were provided with accommodations.
Most Helpful Review
I had him for winter quarter of 2009 and i must say he is very dull. I could not understand him because he was very messy. He has no personality. His midterms are okay but not too hard. The first two midterms and the final all had an average of around 50 but the curve is generous. I ended up with a B in that class but that's okay for me, considering that i never went to lecture after the third week.
I had him for winter quarter of 2009 and i must say he is very dull. I could not understand him because he was very messy. He has no personality. His midterms are okay but not too hard. The first two midterms and the final all had an average of around 50 but the curve is generous. I ended up with a B in that class but that's okay for me, considering that i never went to lecture after the third week.
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