Caught in the Network

By PAUL CESARINI

At 9:15 one Thursday morning, there came a polite knock on my mostly closed office door. I was expecting the knock. A student was coming to talk to me about getting into one of my courses, which he needed to graduate.

So when I heard the knock, I said, "C'mon in, Kyle." Someone said, "Hello?" and came in, along with two smartly dressed...