ENGR 2500

Engr 2500 was a class I accidentally got in my first semester at UVa and it was so great that I'd recommend it to every one, especially first year engineering students. The course is about nano-science/-technology and only requires high school chemistry and physics so that means no limitation in taking the course. Also the course is now a science elective so you'll definitely find this worth taking. The course topic, the nano stuff is such a fore-front scientific topic that breakthroughs are made even during the time you are taking the course. So every week the homework is write a one page analysis on one piece of science news article on nano-science/-tech. You learn to think like a scholar doing real science by asking questions and trying every method available in answering those questions. The homework does take some time each week to finish, two hours mostly for me, but it is really worthy! Professor Bean is an incredible professor. He is very friendly and when you ask a question, he will answer you with enthusiasm and the talk will soon turn into a lively change of ideas. Prof. Bean designs the course so that you are not learning something about nano, but more importantly about how to learn and how to think. This aspect of the course really benefits me tremendously. Also the topic of the course is so broad that in the class, we have students from all kinds of majors joining in. Students can contribute to the class a lot. The last but not the least, the lab of the class is just amazing. You got to have hands on experience on some of the most advanced machine like STM and ATM and also some really cool stuff like making your own superhydrophobic surface and doing DNA finger-printing. Prof Bean and two TA Kian and AJ did a great work in simplifying the difficult procedures into something everyone can do well on. My lab TA is Kian and he is really helpful. I recommend this course to everyone!

Really enjoyable class, it covers a broad scope of areas and really lets you learn a lot about them. Labs are fun. Lecture can drag every once in a while, but it's still much more enjoyable than most classes. Highly recommended for an elective.

This class was really interesting, but lectures were kind of boring. There are no tests in the class, and the midterm and final are papers. The midterm was an analysis of an article, which was basically the same as the weekly homework, just longer. The final was a research paper on a topic of choice. The labs were really cool, and the TAs were incredibly smart, but lab quizzes were hard. Overall though the class was really easy and most people got A's.

Great tech elective for engineers. The only substantial work you do is a one page news report every week. There's a very interesting lab with the easiest lab quizzes and no reports. You're never tested or asked about lecture material, and Professor Bean is very engaging. The midterm and final were just papers.

This class is pretty easy, especially if you've already had physics, biology, or chemistry classes. John Bean really cares about teaching and his class. Only assignments are weekly reviews; however, his grading seems quite arbitrary.

Professor Bean and his labs make this class worthwhile. He cares for the topic very much, and it shows in his passion when learning and teaching the subject. The labs are unique and fun to do. Most importantly, Bean forces you to think critically about science, which helps you consider science topics in a different light. Highly recommended.

ok class. Lots of cool labs but the lab quizzes suck.

More writing (weekly journals and midterm/final papers) than I expected, but overall it's a great class! Basically, it combines a little bit of everything from physics to chem to bio and relates it to nanoscience. Professor Bean is an awesome person.

The course was extremely enjoyable, and Professor Bean is amazingly excited about the material. There are no tests, yet I still feel like I learned a great deal in this class thanks to the highly interactive labs. There is a quiz each week in lab, which takes around 30 minutes to study for, and a nanotechnology article analysis that is roughly a page long (1.5 or double spacing, he doesn't care), which takes maybe an hour to complete, from article to printing. The final paper is the most intensive work in the class, and can be challenging, but the article analyses prepare you for it.

Great class for a Science I elective. The labs are really cool, but make sure to review for the lab quizzes because they can get you. The final is a paper, not too bad if you find something that you are interested in to write about. Over all pretty cool class!