Terrence Deacon - University of California Berkeley

Professor: Terrence Deacon

Department: TBD

College: University of California Berkeley

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: ANTH107
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Professor Deacon is a wonderful lecturer, just preferably don't take his lectures at 8 am, it makes it hard to stay awake in a dark auditorium. He loves his material and can really speak to his research. His tests are notoriously hard but he does curve and the GSIs are a great resource for study help.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: ANTHRO1
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

• For Credit: No
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Very passionate about humans and biological evolution but his lectures were indeed very boring, I would fall asleep in them. He posts the lecture slides on bCourses as well as Course Captures so even if you don't show up to lecture, you will be fine. Weekly quizzes posted on bCourses and are taken during Discussion.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: ANTH1
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Lecture attendance isn't mandatory and slides are posted after. WEEKLY QUIZZES MATTER. Exams aren't as in depth as lecture content--you'll be fine memorizing the slides and quizzes. No graded labs, papers, etc! Also great to be able to hear about Deacon's research and his legacy in the field :) class grade is curved at the end but reasonable

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: ANTHRO1
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

so knowledgable, but for some reason his voice put me to sleep everyday. not the typical monotone you would think of, but still monotone. midterm and final were harder than i expected, but still manageable. quizzes every week and he puts the slides online

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: ANTH1
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Amazing lecturer. He keeps you engaged throughout the class and, presuming you pay attention, you will learn a lot. Very funny and charismatic as well.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: ANTHRO107
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

This was the easiest cog sci elective I've taken. I studied for a couple of days before each exam and got an A (essentially, watched the lectures at 2x). The content is very straightforward but prepare to know the small details from Deacon's own research. Overall, one of the easiest, yet still interesting, classes I took in college.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: ANTHRO107
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Great professor. Hard as hell. Very difficult to know what was going to be on exam. Could be any damn slide. But he was extremely approachable and the GSIs were amazing! Extremely interesting material and Im happy to challenge myself in a course like this. Fair grader and is lenient with a curve. Glad I took it.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: ANTH107
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

This is what you come to Berkeley for. Challamging. Brilliant. Important work. Yet extremely approachable.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: ANTH1
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Deacon is amazing. I felt he went a little too in depth for an intro class at times but he was an incredibly interesting lecturer. He's also hella famous in the anthro world which is super cool and its crazy that he actually teaches an intro class considering his status. Great professor, incredibly knowledgable and a riveting speaker

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: ANTHRO1
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Terry is kind of a meme, but he's also a Harvard grad + professor so he's very well-respected. He has (way too much) info in his slides, but everything for the tests are on there, so it's relatively straightforward. Weekly quizzes are a pain but I was able to study the day of and do well on most of them. Overall ok as long as you don't fall behind.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: ANTH107
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: No
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

He is such an expert in his field that he has no clue how to teach to people that have no idea how the brain works. Test questions are pulled from the tiniest details of lecture slides (which he calls "big picture") and the lecture slides usually consist of complicated, blurry diagrams. DO NOT TAKE ANTH 107 UNLESS YOU HAVE A BIO/COGSCI BACKGROUND

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: ANTH1
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: No
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

A bit boring in lectures, even though the material was interesting. The quizzes are easy as long as you go to lectures and prepare. Did not need the textbook.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: ANTH1
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Very engaging. Made materials interesting through lecture slide (Pics, Vids). Much tougher class than originally thought. Seems like it could be an upper div bio class. Memorize and you'll probably get an A. SIde note, my own exp with all Anthro GSI seem to be hit or miss. Eccentric or bland no in between. Shop around it can make a significant

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: ANTHRO107
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Don't rely too much on lecture videos online -- the course captures on bCourses were really unreliable, and often had no audio (I realized this too late the week before the exam -- be careful!). Midterm & final are mostly Big Idea based. He goes off on tangents involving little details, but you should extrapolate those to the bigger concepts!

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: ANTH111
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Class isn't mandatory - his exams are very straightforward if you study just the lecture slides. However, Prof. Deacon is internationally known in his field, so lectures truly are a treat (many elderly people go to lecture just to listen!). Fascinating material, and an insightful, reasonable person - would love to take another class from him.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: ANTH111
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Deacon inspired me to chart a unique career using evolutionary biology and anthropology in applied fields. An academic heavyweight, he is also not afraid to mentor outside the department and shines his brilliance your way if you ask the right questions, synthesizing across interdisciplinary lines. He is accessible at office hours if you try hard.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: ANTHR112
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

He can sometimes go a bit fast but you get used to it. Some of the information in the slides was irrelevant or overcomplicated.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: ANTHRO1
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Prof. Deacon explains the concepts clearly, although he does rant on certain topics. He shows funny, interesting videos throughout lecture. The course is easy, GSI not really needed. We had quizzes at the beginning of our discussion. Prof. Deacon was nice enough to give us the questions on the quizzes a week beforehand. Amazing class, do take!

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: ANTHRO1
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

Professor Deacon really knows his stuff but he talks forever. First class I have ever fallen asleep in. Readings are not necessary as all test questions are from lecture slides and practice quizzes.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: ANTHRO1
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Prof. Deacon was an amazing lecturer, if you paid attention. It's easy to lose focus because there are no participation points. Do not lose focus. Tests are based entirely off of lecture material. An easy A if you can pay attention.