I received the following email:

Dear Dr. Gelman,

As a way of introduction, my name is . . . and I am very interested in studying in Columbia’s PhD statistics program. For the past 2 ½ years, I’ve worked as an analyst for . . . I am writing to communicate my interest in your research area. I was particularly interested in your publication titled . . . I believe my scholastic and work experiences have prepared me well to be a strong contributor to the field of statistics. . . . I would love the opportunity to discuss your research and Columbia’s statistics department in greater depth. . . .

I replied, generically:

Hi, thanks for your note. You should apply to our program. I’m not on the admissions committee this year but if you are admitted and choose to attend, you will be free to study with any of the faculty in our department, including me. We have several interesting projects involving statistical modeling and social science and there’s lots of important research to be done!

And, a bit later, he wrote:

Thank you for your response. . . . I am planning a visit to New York City from . . . If you are available sometime in that interval to have an informal discussion about Columbia’s statistics department I would love to meet.

I proposed a date and time, and then I wrote:

Just please tell me you’re not this guy:

Some will spam you with a six-gun and some with a fountain pen

If you are, I will scream.

He replied, assuring me that he is a real human. We shall see.