John Mutter

Honestly, one of the most frustrating classes. Unfortunate that its a requirement for SDEV, but it consists of mind number lectures, UNHELPFUL and MEAN TAs that grade so harshly, and unfair midterms.

Professor Mutter really was a good teacher! He had a very low key way about him unless he was excited about some scientific principle. (He reminded me of Bill Nye on chill pills.) He explains things very thoroughly - in fact, if you have any background in environmental science it's very easy to let your mind wander during some of the more boring, technical lectures (such is the nature of science class!) and still grasp the concept entirely. I agree completely with previous reviews about his slides. They're relatively minimal and without a textbook for reference, you really, really do need to attend lecture. It's usually pretty good stuff though. It was one of those classes you didn't mind going to. Oh, and the two professor thing really didn't bother me at all. I actually liked the two perspectives. I totally recommend this class. "He's an economist. He doesn't care if you read the book, he just wants you to buy it." Good stuff, Professor Mutter.

Having a world-class scientist and brilliant political economist makes this class enjoyable and genuinely interesting. 1 Columbia University: Arts & Sciences Fall 2024 Course: SDEVUN3360_001_2024_3-DISASTERSANDDEVELOPMENT : SDEVUN3360_001_2024_3 - DISASTERS AND DEVELOPMENT Instructor: John Mutter

The fundamentals of the solid earth - rocks, minerals, plate tectonics, volcanoes, earthquakes, etc.

I took this the strike semester (Fall 2021)... I really liked it, but our workload declined. Mutter has a bad rep... I really did not mind him. He can sound quite boring, but I didn't mind. This is a mediocre review. I don't think I learned much in the class.

I love Professor Mutter!!! He is quite possibly the cutest old man ever! Class with him was very interesting. You cannot help but love him and he is very very nice. There is no textbook so each class and all the information comes from a powerpoint. Most of the information in the powerpoint needs to be explained so come midterm/final those who went to class and took good notes were sufficiently better prepared. That being said, they do not take attendance so it is really left up to you how much you want to go to class. Coming from a student who generally does not go to class, I truly benefited a LOT by going to every class and taking notes. The midterm and final are all short answer so you really have to be on top of your stuff.

More participation, more recently published readings. 1 Columbia University: Arts & Sciences Fall 2023 Course: SDEVUN3360_001_2023_3-DISASTERSANDDEVELOPMENT : SDEVUN3360_001_2023_3 - DISASTERS AND DEVELOPMENT Instructor: John Mutter

Very broad and overarching overview of earth science fields.

Boring, terribly organized. Avoid if possible. don't take for science requirement. worst class ive taken at columbia

Please ignore the earliest reviews for Professor Mutter. I just took a class with him last semester (intro to earth sciences I) and he's definitely worth taking another class with. He did have a tendency to keep everything he said almost identical to the subject matter in the class notes posted online, but I found that more helpful than aggravating. Yes, you do have to take notes, but if you miss a few facts you'll probably be able to find them on the course notes to supplement what you got from class. He went out of his way time and time again to explain potentially challenging concepts to us in ways that were easy for us to understand if what was on the notes wasn't clear enough. If he fumbles around a little, it’s just his way, but it’s obvious that he knows what he’s talking about and he certainly knows how to get that information across to a class. He's not the most fantastic professor I've had so far, but he's part of the reason I decided to major in Earth Science. I highly suggest taking one of his classes.