Larry Cain - Davidson College, Davidson, NC

Professor: Larry Cain

Department: Physics

College: Davidson College, Davidson, NC

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: PHY103
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Dr. Cain is a great professor! His class can be a little dry but he does a good job of making the material relevant to all of his students. Exams aren't too difficult and he loves it when students come to office hours. Good option for people in environmental studies/ who need a science credit.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: PHY130
• Grade Received: C+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Dr. Cain is a very experienced professor and it shows in his teaching style in and outside of class. His lectures are very clear and if not, his door is always open. Like any other physics course, the amount of time involved in completing and understanding is the most difficult part. But Dr. Cain makes it as easy as possible.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: PHY130
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Dr. Cain is wonderful. He gives very clear and interesting lectures, but a lot of homework as well. His office hours were very helpful and he is always available. Definitely would take another physics class with him.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: PHY106
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Cain is friendly, approachable, and full of energy. He gives pretty good lectures and answers questions pretty well in office hours. The subject material is easy, and the workload is manageable, but the test questions are relatively difficult and sometimes graded harshly. I pulled out an A-, but it didn't come easily. Overall, I recommend.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: PHY130
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Nice guy, but poor choice of classroom. I blame the seats...

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: PHY130
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

He's a great lecturer and he keeps your attention in class despite how comfortable the seats are. The lectures serve more as supplements to the chapter readings. Starts off with a lot of homework but thins down towards the end of the semester. He really wants his students to succeed and more or less forces office hours.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: PHY130
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Fairly easy physics class. Very reasonable grader. He gives great partial credit on problems. It's very straight forward and should not be difficult if you have experience with prior physics classes. He is a great lecturer and clearly cares about his students. Always available to help. He really wants you to learn physics.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: PHY130
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Cain expects you to read the chapters yourself, and that the lectures are more of an addition to them. He goes through the content very quickly, and grades relatively harshly on homework and tests. Cain never goes through the computations in class, but expects that you can do them perfectly on homework and tests.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: PHY103
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Dr. Cain knows what he's doing. He teaches and explains things very clearly, so even non-physics majors can understand the material. He's even more helpful in office hours, giving you exactly the answer that you're looking for. He does grade a little too harshly, but the workload for the class is very manageable. Overall, I wasn't too disappointed.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: PHY130
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

I absolutely adore Dr. Cain. I would become a physics major just for him if I wasn't so bad at physics. The class isn't too bad, and there actually isn't that much calculus. He grades homework pretty hard, but the tests are fair.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: PHYC
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Dr. Cain is really tough and expects a lot from you on tests, but overall very fair. USE HIS OFFICE HOURS! They saved me in 130 :) He really knows his stuff, loves to teach, and will go over things with you over and over until you understand. Beware: he almost always answers your question with a question, so that you figure things out yourself.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: PHY130
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Despite earnestly wanting to teach everyone physics, he breezes through material, and often confuses students more than helps them during questions. Tests were pretty straightforward though.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: PHY220
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Dr. Cain is amazing. He is not an easy grader, but is fair and always willing to help. His lectures are clear and easy to follow. He keeps it interesting.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: PHYA
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Cain is a great guy. An entertaining and pretty funny lecturer. Even though the chairs make half the class fall asleep, he does a good job of keeping folks engaged. HW is easy enough and you should take notes of the reading as you go along. Class notes are important for tests, which are kind of hard. He looks a lot like Merlin. Wish he had an owl.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: PHY350
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Excellent teacher. Very good class and lectures. The homework was extremely hard but it was good preparation for the exams. I'll always be a bit bummed my grade got hit because I didn't see the 5th question on the final.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: PHYS130
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Amazing professor. Quirky at times, but in a hilarious way. He really knows his stuff, and while he avoids giving straight answers to questions, he always does a good job leading you towards the solution. Favorite Davidson professor by far.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: PHY103
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Always available and eager to help. Homework grades help your average as he does not grade too hard on those, but tests are graded harder. Lecture style can make it hard to stay awake, but Dr. Cain is sooo nice and sometimes funny too.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: PHY105
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Haha, I wish he were my uncle, too! He is HILARIOUS! The quintessential professor! I struggled in his class, because I did not always complete the readings and physics is not my best area; however, he does his best to be clear and at the very least will keep you entertained. Some people got bored in lecture: chairs conducive to sleeping. Cozy.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: PHY130
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

He is genuinely interested in teaching and it shows. He is always available, and he is really excited to see students come in for office hours. The tests are hard, and he can move a little fast in lectures. SIt in the front row and go to office hours...it really makes a difference with him.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: PHYLAB
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

I only had Dr. Cain in lab for Physics 130. He is nice most of the time but as the lab goes on, he can get on your nerves. It's weird; if you are screwing up, he'll lecture you, unless it's just so bad that you can't help but apologize repeatedly. Then all of a sudden he's Mister Nice Guy.