PHYS 1429

This course is a LOT easier than what the reviewers before Spring 2024 had to go through: there are no more lab reports and out of class work basically just consists of a prelab/skill work and a postlab, both in WebAssign. The lab itself isn't fun, though if you have good group members you'll be fine (we walked out early most times). Unlike the intro chem lab, there is no clear set of procedures though you will get the help you need (from the TAs who teach your section) to figure out what to do, but you need to derive the formulas needed to figure out the postlab during lab. The prelabs are usually easy, testing on physics skills and basic math skills. Some of the postlab questions were annoying, but you can work on them with your group and there are office hours.

Tip: although you don't turn in the lab manual, make sure to read it and write down any relevant data (otherwise doing your postlab will be difficult).

Overall, this course isn't great, but it's not too bad, if you have a good group. #tCFS24

Don't let any of the reviews on here before Spring 2024 scare you. I just finished taking this class (spring 2024), and they significantly restructured the course this semester for the better. Key: no lab reports! The course basically consisted of an hour and 50 minutes each week in lab, plus a pre-lab and a post-lab that you had to complete on WebAssign (mostly straightforward math or conceptual problems, and you get multiple tries per question). I'd say I spend about 2-ish hours working on these assignments (maybe more) outside of class, which is annoying for a course that is only one-credit, but definitely not hard and I'd say it is pretty easy to get an A. The TAs I interacted with in lab and office hours (definitely go if you get stuck on any assignment) were super helpful and wanted you to succeed. The labs themselves were fairly straightfoward, not the most interesting things in the world but the TAs walked our group through them anytime we got stuck. Overall, I can't say I'd recommend taking this course if it's not required for you, but it shouldn't be painful.

People make this class sound very scary, but to be honest if you go to office hours and talk with the TAs about your reports you have nothing to worry about. Once you understand the structure of the lab reports, they become much easier to write and you sort of understand how to do them well without losing too many points. The prelabs are usually not bad and can usually be done in less than an hour, especially if you go to office hours. The postlabs in this class can be pretty time-consuming (it gets much better in physics 2 workshop) just because you're usually expected to take so much data during the lab itself that it's hard to write much of the lab report during class. My personal recommendation is to get familiar with all aspects of what you're supposed to do (predictions, error prop, Capstone, writing), just in case you need it, but to have the same person work on the same tasks every week for efficiency (which also makes it much easier to get similar grades from week to week on the lab reports). #tCFS24

They reformatted this class which makes it pretty easy: web assign post labs and prelabs, work with your group in class and use capstone to submit assignments. It is pretty straight-forward and I can say labs are most likely graded on completion. You only see the TAs, no presence of the professor. boring but easy to get out of the way.

professor never really had a presence in my time during this lab. mainly the TAs, and the one time i was around him during office hours it seemed as if he had an attitude, but otherwise you don't really interact with the professor. TAs are there to guide you during the lab session so solidify everything during lab time i would say (like equations, hypothesis, etc.). the grading is kind of bs. I've gone to office hours to get help on the hypothesis and then my graded version was told that it was wrong so some TAs may be better than others.

Terrifying class. You actually learn a ton out of how labs work, error propagation, and everything else, but the way that it is taught is highly dependent on the Lab TAs you get. My lab TAs weren't bad, and I think that if you take this class, in order to do well, you need to ask TAs all the questions you can.

Go to office hours (if they want to help you) for report-writing. The grading TAs seem to be trained to grade as sadistically as possible, and if you're like most, you will need guidance from TAs in office hours to write a report that they will like.

Overall, if you don't particularly enjoy physics experiments, just take the two labs at community college and transfer them here. It's a pain in the ass for 1 credit.

This class is not fun at all to say the least. If you get a good group, it is not as bad because you can divide up the work. I would recommend going to office hours and getting help because they do grade hard. There are 10 or so lab reports where you have one every week. They start the year off giving you feedback on your lab report so that you know where to improve and so that you don’t get penalized. I say if you have to take this class take it but if you don’t have to take it, don’t take it for fun. The ta’s also teach the whole class and not the teacher.

This lab is way too extensive for an introductory physics class. While it isn't difficult necessarily to achieve an A in this class, it is time intensive. There is a discontinuity between the graders and the lab TAs in what they expect for you to include in your lab report; the lab TAs don't tell you everything that the grader's will take points off if you don't include. So, Iin addition to the lab you will want to go to grader's office hours on Fridays and talk to them about their expectations for each part of the report. There is a rubric present, but the graders are looking for the most specific things, and they will take points off if they are not present even though no one told you to include it during your lab.Also, some of the pre labs are convoluted, so I highly recommend you go to TA office hours and get help because they count towards your grade, and you'll need all of the points you can get. A major factor for your enjoyment in this class will be your group, which is chosen at random. Because another member in my group and myself had much stronger analytical skills, we had to carry the report while our other members did significantly less work. But hey, chances are you don't have the option other than to take this class, so just be prepared to buckle down.

This class will make you wanna rip your brains out. It's midway in November and haven't seen the Professor speak to the class once. The lab guide will tell you to do one thing, the lab TAs will tell you another and then the grader TAs will tell you another. So you have no idea what to put on the lab report. Best part the report can only be 1 page, good luck answering the 18 questions on 1 page. The grader TAs are the reason why this class is terrible. You can turn in Einstein's report on Special Relativity and they will find a way to give you a 80. They also look for obscure words which if they aren't said exactly as they want you say they will cut down your grade faster than a truffula tree in the Lorax. These words won't be asked for in the manual but they were told to look for. This is an abomination of a class and I recommend you not take it unless you have to.

An incredibly poorly run and poorly taught course. Maxim delegates his entire course load to undergraduate or graduate students who are clearly instructed to give limited guidance. The concept of the class is to build on ideas learned in Phys 1425(incidentally a well taught class) and use it in practical applications. Instead, maxim has turned it into an amalgamation of grammar nitpicking, formatting guide deep-dives, and what can only be explained as willful negligence of responsibility to teach a class, or otherwise a direct and vindictive decision to create difficulty in an inherently straightforward class through vague direction, purposeful absence and grading criteria based on marks wholly irrelevant to a physics courseload. You will certainly spend more time on a single pre-lab(which will be both difficult and neglect helpful resources) in this class then you will interact or learn from maxim all semester. It is remarkable to me that such a fundamental science class at a university of our level continues to exist in such a developmental, non-contributory form. If you have any other option to pursue this class in any other form, I would seriously consider it.

Coming from someone who got an A, my biggest tip is to make very clear roles for each group member. They told us to switch it up but my group decided not to and it worked very well for us. We had only three members (while most groups had 4) so I was initially afraid that that would mean more work and make the class harder. But we all took on the role that got best with out strengths; there was someone who handled the math, someone who read up on the lab set/procedure so they set stuff up and collected data, and then someone who worked to put it all together. It was bumpy at first because you don't really know what the TAs are looking for, but eventually it got to the point where we would just silently work because we had such a flow. We all left with As in the class. While you can't pick your group, everyone in your group has to have a strength in one component of the lab. Split it up in this way, master your own section, and then put it all together.

Fuck this class. I wish I would have studied a shit ton and got a 5 on the AP physics 1 exam so I could get out of this. Worse course at UVA. Assignments fill me with dread, super unclear instructions, terrible TAs, insanely harsh grading. 5-6 hours a week of work plus 2 hour lab just for a 1 credit class. This class needs to be shut down. Instructors are not understanding of the fact that we are taking other classes outside of this one.

I'm writing this less to tell you anything that hasn't already been said and more as therapy for me to exorcise the nightmares of this class from my brain.

This will be the most unjustifiably difficult and most deeply unsatisfying B you will ever receive in any class, period. If your lab group includes the second coming of Albert Einstein (one guy in my section filled up two blackboards with uncertainty propagations every class and his group was ready to build a statue to him by the end of the semester), you'll be fine. If you're stuck with normal, fallible human beings who are swamped by the rest of their courseload, godspeed.
Maksim Bychkov puts in an appearance about once a month to remind you that he exists and is just as terrifying as you remembered him, but other than that, he has close to zero involvement in the class. There was no hands-on element in this class, even in person - each class we were given a video of Bychkov doing the lab (that invariably looked like it was shot on an iPhone 5) that we would have to painstakingly track frame by frame because, 9 times out of 10, the autotracking feature of Capstone would lose its mind trying to stay on the right pixel. The only instructors you will actually interact with are the three lab TA's (Chris is a g) but they don't actually have a say in what your lab grades are - no, that honor would go to the grading TA's, who you never meet (unless you decide to show up to an office hour session and get gaslit the entire time while not getting a single point back on your lab) and who have no qualms whatsoever about handing out 12/20s like candy. The inconsistency in the grading is staggering - you could submit the same exact lab two weeks in a row, get a 18/20 on one, and a 11/20 on the other because the grader you got randomly assigned for that week woke up feeling dangerous.

I learned nothing from this class other than basic data analysis skills I could have figured out in 20 minutes. Just work your butt off, try to avoid making Bychkov mad, get a half decent grade, and then scrub this class from your memory.

This class was really quite terrible. I took it during covid which probably didn't help, but it really seems like every element of the course was working together to make it the worst experience possible. The professor never had any sort of interaction with the class at all and was essentially unreachable - the lab TAs introduced the content and the grading TAs looked at our assignments, so I'm not sure what this guy was getting paid for. One of my lab TAs was actually a pretty nice guy, but the other was generally unhelpful and seemed to get really frustrated every time my group didn't understand something (which didn't exactly inspire a lot of love for the course). The grading TAs seemed really arbitrary in their decisions, and if you got one of the worse ones, too bad! I understand that a lot of folks have to take this class (and for that I'm sorry) but if you've tested out and are considering taking it again for some reason, reconsider.

This course is a lot of work for one credit. I took this course when it was online, so all of the Pre-Labs, Post-Labs, and Lab Reports were due on WebAssign. The class is taught primarily by TAs so make sure to email them if you have a question. Your lab group is extremely important to your success in the class, I was fortunate to have all of my group members pull their weight. Definitely GO TO OFFICE HOURS if you have questions and write lab reports strictly according to the rubric they give you, because they are graded out of 20 points and they take off points for the smallest of things, such as not having the correct number of sig figs or not explaining the experimental setup properly. The TAs are extremely helpful and understand what you're going through because the majority of them have taken the course.
It is doable to get an A, but it's a lot of work. Physics 2 lab is much better and had fairer grading in my opinion.
ALSO: Kazu is an amazing TA for this class, if you get him, you're extremely lucky. He gives great explanations of the labs and helps walk you through it!

The TAs thought this course not the professor. The course itself was a pain - both uninteresting and tedious. A good portion of your grade comes from lab reports and your grade in that depends on what group members you get so it's essentially a lottery. The TAs were great people and helpful.

Way too much work for a single credit hour class, grading is very harsh, not enjoyable at all (to even someone who likes physics). Don't recommend taking it if you have a choice.

Take it at a community college. Class is unorganized, poorly graded, poorly taught, and poorly run. TAs will be incorrect about the right way to do things and assignments, and the TAs who check your work and direct classes are not the same ones who grade so the entire grading scheme is totally random and inconsistent. Content isn't hard but grading is random so you can't even expect a decent grade knowing the material. By far the worst class I have taken at UVA so far, and I will not be taking Physics 2 lab here because of that.

*During COVID so completely online [#tCF2020]
If you have a good group, you will be somewhat okay if not great. If you don't, you better get ready for the semester to suck or hope you can kick them/get a new one as that is an option in the class syllabus.

Class breakdown is as follows:pre-lab homework is worth 15%, in-lab assignment is worth 15% (they randomly pick a group to grade, pick random questions?, and it's graded 2-3 times per semester), the post-lab is worth 30%, and lab report is worth 40%.
Didn't see the professor AT ALL, you're gonna be relying on your TAs and your group mates so you best hope you get a good group. Thankfully, I did and we all got As in this class - that is NOT the case for many and even then the graders on the lab reports are going to screw you over sometimes.
My group (3 people) early on decided that we were going to meet up on zoom each week to write the report together. 2 of us wrote it in sections while 1 edited as we went along and we all kind of wrote the conclusion together. When we got confused, we just asked each other questions. ALSO SOMETHING EXTREMELY IMPORTANT - the graders meet on Friday, the lab reports are due on Monday. YOU CAN GET THE GRADERS TO REVIEW YOUR LAB REPORTS - and get their commentary for what to improve - this will come in important later.
Here's what I ended up doing towards the end of the semester which helped immensely as I had no memory, in steps:
1. You are not going to remember JACK after completing the lab - and sometimes your group won't either, so immediately after the lab do a rough draft of the first half of the lab (overview, quantitative+qualitative predictions, and measurements section) just get it done real quick. At the very end of the class, ASK THE TA's DIRECTLY what should be focused on when explaining the qualitative prediction/how it should even be explained without using calculus, if the quantitative prediction is an EQUATION or an actual number, and ask about the conclusion section's questions. If a rough draft is too much, you better take notes when asking the TA those questions, and take screenshots of what they write down if they write down the formulas needed for the predictions.
2. Establish what your group is doing. My group met up for ~3/4 hours on zoom to write this lab every week (on Thursdays) before I started making the rough draft directly after the labs which cut down time immensely as it just needed to be edited and the conclusion had to be added. This is also because we got distracted sometimes as we talked, if your group just ultra focused you could probably get it done in 2.5/3.
3. On Fridays, bring your lab to the grader you have that week and get them to look over it and fix the paper right after. Ask about the prediction section, and the conclusion section. They will tell you if you're using the correct numbers in your calculations, and if your answer is within the ballpark of what is acceptable. If it's not, ask them about your math/how to do the math if there's time (sometimes this is pushing it). IMPORTANT, the graders are on a rotation. Some are harsher than others, but you can argue for half points back/full points back and we were successful in doing so 3 times which helped immensely as each lab is worth 20 points and a 17.5/20 is much different than an 18.5 or 19/20 when it's 40% of your grade. Your labs will make or break your grade.
4. By doing this, tou get to relax over the weekend, or have additional time to fix the lab over the weekend. Also, sometimes the TAs hold emergency/we pity you office hours on Sundays to go over the conclusions sections/problematic sections, or the postlabs which can be crap sometimes.
Honestly, if the postlab is hard that week go to office hours, sometimes the way to get the answer isn't clear at all and you're gonna need help. If you do well enough on the labs, the POSTLABS are going to boost you to an A, or bring you down to a B.
Honestly, you don't need an A in this course it's 1 credit you'll be fine, but if you really want it this is what worked best for me.

The basic physics labs just aren't great at UVA. It's all group based, so if you don't have a good/ motivated group you're kind of screwed. You don't have any interaction with Prof Bychkov, its mostly all run by the TAs (the physical lab and the grading), which can be frustrating as there's kind of a lapse in communication between them, making it unclear what is expected of you. The actual labs themselves aren't too bad, but are mostly confusing based on the wording of questions/ scenarios. You have a lab report due typically every other week, with weekly prelabs and biweekly postlab quizzes. The lab reports aren't super time consuming, but the graders can be super knit-picky and you have to fit a ton of information on a single page which can be really annoying to format. If you don't have to take the class as a requirement, then I really wouldn't recommend it.

#tCF2020

For lab courses one's experience typically depends on the quality of your groupmates. My group was good but this course was still difficult! The labs themselves vary in quality but the reports are always a chore to write for the results received. My group consistently got 80-85s on ours regardless of what we put on.

The postlabs vary in difficulty but generally skew towards the hard side. This is especially true for the latter ones. The class uses WebAssign for the postlabs so there is no partial credit for work or anything. The cumulative postlab at the end was exceedingly difficult. You have been warned!

It's hard to tell whether the professor has a vendetta against his students or just hates his job. He is extremely unapproachable (no office hours, doesn't respond to many emails, etc.) and the grading of the assignments are so arbitrary you could submit a nobel prize winning paper and get a 95 or a 60 on the lab report based on how the grader is feeling. The grader is incredibly difficult to talk to, and even after talking to other TA's several times to discuss revisions and ways to improve the lab report, do not expect more than an 80-90 on it unless your physics knowledge makes you one of the 4 people of out a class of 26 who received an A in the course. You will lose points for nonsensical parts and you will have to argue with the TA for points back if you do not want a grade lower than an 80. The pre labs are very easy, and the post labs are not bad, this is what prevents people from failing the course. In our section, 4 people got C's, 18 people got B's, and 4 got A's, so odds are you will most likely get a B and just move on. The only good thing is that its a 1 credit class, not because the work is equivalent to 1 credit (more like 2-3), but because if it was any more than that peoples GPAs would definitely fall. There's not really any way for you to miss this class, so just brace for it and do what you can! You will survive this course, get the required credit, and move on.

Honestly, this lab should be worth way more than 1 credit. The lab times are incredibly long- an hour and 50 minutes, but it goes by pretty quick. The groups are randomized so just pray you get a good one. Each week the lab is usually focused on a different physics "topic", and then there is either a written or online "quiz style" postlab. The quiz type post labs are a little tedious, and the lab write ups are tough cause the graders can just take off points for no reason. There are two TAs assigned to each section, and it really just depends on if you get good TAs for your section.

I've never really liked physics and this lab didn't do anything to change my mind. There was a lot to keep track of with prelabs, in lab reports, out of lab reports, and postlabs and each week alternated which assignments you had. The prelabs were usually pretty easy and only took a few minutes. The postlab quizzes were timed and often included some crazy calculations and trial and error. You get a few responses without losing points so it's not too difficult to get the right answers even if it takes a few tries. The reports really sucked though. The TAs grade them and they don't tell you what you need to be including in the reports. You can answer all the questions that the lab asks for and still get points off for missing something else. The comments on the reports are no help because they don't tell you what you can do to fix them. I had an awesome group but our grades for the reports were never great. The grading seems really arbitrary too because my group got anything from 60% to 85% for the same amount of effort. With all the assignments for this class, it definitely felt like more than just 1 credit. I think I spent more time on this class than some of my 3 credit classes, which is messed up. Overall, I did not enjoy this class, but it was required for my major. Hope for a good group and good TAs and just do your best. Good Luck!

Overall, this class was fine but did ask a lot for a one-credit class. Labs were not that bad, but the amount of writing for each lab, the difficulty of some post-lab questions, and ambiguous and repetitive nature of some warm-up questions felt unnecessary. However, the TA's, who run the class, were quite helpful and kind when you ask them questions.

You won't actually see Maksim, the class will be taught by TAs who are usually nice but not always helpful. This class is a lot of work for 1 credit and not a class you take for fun. Timed quizzes every week or two were the bane of my existence. Lab reports also depend on your grading TA and my group would seemingly get 18/20 or 14/20 for the similar efforts put forth and points were taken off for very minor things. This semester, an A was > 93.5 and an A- > 89.5. I barely got an A- but will be taking CR. Don't leave writing lab reports until the day they are due. Also DO NOT take the Wednesday 6:00 pm lab if you are taking PHYS 1425 because you will have a 2-hour lab then a test right after, which while doable, is not idea in the least. This class is very stressful for no good reason.

This class is extremely difficult for the one credit it is worth. There are so many different assignments to keep track of, including prelabs, inlabs, and postlabs. The lab reports are very difficult to do well on, and your grades are entirely dependent on the ta you get. Just hope you get a good group to work with and have a routine of who does which part of the lab report.

I've only seen Prof Bychkov a handful of times, but the TAs who ran the lab were both really nice and always helpful (shoutouts to omar and katie). The lab is very structured and you do all your work in a group, so the people in that group basically make or break your semester. I've heard they made the class more manageable for my year, and I gotta agree, but I still think it's way too much work for just 1 credit.