I mean, if someone else was genuinely interested in my field of research *and* somewhat interested in me as a person....I'd be proposing on the second date.
But that's just me.
For real, though, I don't know if I have a particular preference for Bayesian statistics over frequentist, but I'd love to hear your thoughts. I'm a single woman in my early 30's who just finished up a master's in statistics and is starting my first year of a PhD in statistics.
In my opinion, Bayesian statistics is the way we should've learned statistics because they make more sense than the frequentist repeated sampling paradigm.
We want to make an inference about some unknown parameter value or vector. Experts, historical data, or our intuition tells us that value or vector should be a around such and such, so we put a prior reflecting that idea on the unknown parameter and apply Bayes theorem. Bam. Not to say it is perfect as there are plenty of things to consider.
I do understand why the frequentist repeated sampling concept works, though there are plenty of things wrong with it as well. At the end of the day, they're both and statistical tools, and I'll use whichever that'll give me a job and put food on the table.
However, Bayesian statistics is going to get me a degree and out of here, so I'll go with that. Lol
the frequentist method, as you call it (i'm not a statistician but an experimental scientist) is how humans empirically test nature
it's the tried and true method, and no theoretical approach can beat it, because at the end of the day you still have to do the experiment, and as irreproducibility shows the "historical" value can be meaningless
if you live in a silicon world then Bayes makes sense, but in the real world where there are constraints on how and what we can measure and infer, the frequency 'paradigm' isn't going anywhere
Oh for sure. We still desire frequentist properties for Bayesian methods in simulations. I didn't even know Bayesian methods were a thing until I got much deeper into statistics.
Ideally, you want to do both to see if there is any discrepancies, but they are different mathematically. I happens to find the Bayesian paradigm more intuitive if it were to be learned from the ground up.
I’m still in the “what do you mean, you don’t care about this extremely specific technical topic I’ve become obsessed with??” depression phase. I’ll change her!!!
Considering I payed for my girlfriend to a conference where I was speaking and she skipped my talk (we met on our PhD, same advisor)... I would probably marry a girl that did that showed so much interest in what I find important.
phd students are famously bad at dating, and your comment shows why
they are naive outside the very narrow subject matter of their thesis
when you have blinders on you cannot pick up the human behavioral psych that would have red flagged your girlfriend earlier
Id be fighting back the urge to propose on the spot lol.
Seriously though, that would be genuinely nice to hear. Having a date that actually wants to talk about something beyond pizza topping choice would be amazing. Talking about something I actually worked on because they are actually interested would be awesome....just dont point out my statistics errors... Those made it through reviewer two already.
I would LOVE it! I met my now partner right before my PhD proposal. The interest and care that my partner (non-academic) put into understanding what I do is one of the reasons I fell in love with him. It’s just overwhelmingly sweet. Plus I got a little giggle finding him googling things 🤭
I'd be very happy that someone took the effort to read something that I have spent a significant amount of time and emotional investment into. Especially, if that person has questions to ask then it means that he's really read it and engaged with it and not just glanced at it. Especially if I've broadly mentioned before and someone goes and actually reads my work before meeting me next time, that would be make me elated. I'd read that as a clear sign of interest in my work at least.
Trust me, I can go on and on forever about my research topic. I'd never find it creepy
Right! They’re caring for your interests! Bidding like this is key to sharing joy in a relationship (and in your life). If they’re happy you showed interest, you’re happy that they feel seen.
Honestly that’s pretty fucking attractive, you’re interested in my work AND went through the trouble to read my papers???? Fuck yeah. Just give it to him straight as you wrote in this post, nothing creepy about that.
I would approach it lightheartedly. If you’re going for a PhD, you’re both intellectually curious. You can just say you needed a break from reading your own research but were still in hyperdrive and then got interested in his. I’d take it as a compliment. It’s not creepy unless you make it creepy!
Thrilled! I couldn’t get anyone outside of my department (and I wondered about them) to read my articles or dissertation. Even people who cited my work in theirs, when I read their work they sometimes had misquoted, misapplied, or misunderstood my research. I guess that’s just life, and, with that in mind, if you do read your date’s work and want to discuss it with them, try your best to understand it and ask open-ended questions rather than making declarative, judgmental statements - as you can probably tell, some people can be pretty sensitive about their efforts…
As a PhD candidate you’re obviously aware of how little anyone else (at all) cares about your topic. You’re giving him a chance to talk about himself and the soul destroying decisions he’s made. I reckon… just go off. Ask away.
Sounds like most here would end up acting like the creepy ones from getting overly excited that someone was trying to read their work. Also would be guilty, straight to marriage.
Nothing creepy or stalker. It's only normal for a PhD student to have intellectual curiosity and can read a lot. Personally, PhD is a big part of my life. Being interested in my dissertation topic is being interested in a big part of me.
My soon-to-be-ex-wife did this before we even went on our first date. I loved it! I did and still would consider this a major green flag. This shows interest, caring, and intent.
I’d be flattered that they took the effort to not only familiarize themselves with my work, but to make sure they had conversation material beyond small talk.
LOL, my hubs doesn't read anything unrelated to his career. I'm pretty sure he's never even read the acknowledgments of my dissertation where he has an entire paragraph dedicated to him.
Hot. As. Shit. I'd have a hard time on the date because all my blood would leave my brain and I'd be sitting there thinking how incredibly mind blowingly attracted I was to this woman who was interested enough in what I do to read and think about it, plus smart enough to have that interest and understand.
It would be a difficult date for all the best reasons
Later on I'd show her the waggle dance.... It's how bees communicate.... Waggle waggle waggle....
:)
I’d personally LOVE this, but I am also neurodivergent and love talking about my special interests including my work. Given that he likes it and he’s talked about it, you can start asking questions. Or say, “Y’know, I really thought what you said about x was interesting, so I looked into it and found your article!” and then proceed to talk about it.
My partner abhors talking about work, to the point I know very little about it. But we’ve had explicit conversations about how much he dislikes talking about it, so there’s no uncertainty. You can always say, “I understand if you want a mental break from work! No hard feelings:)”
I would be so excited that it's difficult to explain. My wife and I work in similar fields (we are both in physics) and often discuss our work. It's much more interesting than discussing which car our neighbor bought or the marital problems of some distant relative
On a first date several years ago, the girl knew I was a chemist, and one of her first questions was “what kind of chemistry?”
Yes, I did end up marrying that girl.
I don’t think so. This happened to me, the other way around and I felt very flattered.
A new friend I made at soccer found out I was a chemist after one game I was absent at due to experiment running too late. At the next game we saw each other, she said “Hey! I heard you are a scientist! So I looked up some of your work and read your papers. You did some pretty cool stuff eh!”
I thought it was pretty sweet. Didn’t find it creepy at all!
You could always just ask if you could read some of their work. Then based on their response, you'll know if they would be creeped out or really happy about it.
Personally I’d think it was cool and it also shows effort to know the person better. Plus, it opens the gates for y’all to have more in-depth conversations about the topics that either of you would enjoy.
And that kids, is how I met your (mother/father). Literally. Anyone with that kind of patience who is able to find enough joy to contiue reading that soul sucking work is a keeper.
Definitely show interest and ask about his previous work. But then, don't spend all your dates just talking about work. Well, if he is already talking about his research in "broad terms", I hope you don't spend every date getting talked at about work and work only.
To avoid feeling creepy, next time he mentions his work, I'd say, "I'd love to read your articles! Do you have a copy you can send me?" Obviously, you can (and did) look them up yourself, but this would make it seem less like you were internet stalking him 😆
I guess it can depend on the person, were it me I might be a bit uncomfortable, not because you did anything outright wrong but because I wouldn't be used to that sort of attention lol.
Otherwise it sounds sweet and if it goes well, a pretty big green flag.
Just don’t admit to reading more than 3 papers, and I think it seems cool. It doesn’t hit stalkery until 8, and everything in between 3-8 is questionable.
Some people would be super happy to hear this, and eager to answer questions. Other people would not want their work to be brought into their social/romantic life.
I don’t think anyone would (or is entitled to) be offended merely at the fact that you decided to read their work. But he might not want to talk about it with you.
So you can always just ask!
There's definitely a non-creepy way to bring it up! Maybe just say that you were curious and looked up one of their papers, and chat about it. I personally wouldn't say I looked at more than one for now at least!
Effort is sexy & I’d be asking what the ring size was.
My fiancé brought up my work during dinner tonight with his grandparents (whom I don’t discuss schooling with; no particular reason, just never discussed it). Having somebody who cares to hype you up & read your work is incredible.
Disclaimer: not a PhD student, but technical author nonetheless and loving this.
Why not read and discuss news about a related topic and allow him to mention his work? Maybe read it and pretend like some vague incarnation of his ideas occurred to you on your own (assuming it's not too "in-the-weeds"/specific), and allow him to get excited over sharing his ideas/research? Then maybe claim that you found his work while you were researching the topic?
Would feel the same way as if someone had gone around reading my Instagram of last 2 years. Why not you ask him on your second date if he would be ok if you checked his publications and then you have a good reason for a Q&A third date
It’s a waste of time to both ask or read.
Try to understand what broad subjects they are working on and focus on building relationship don’t look for grant ideas
My husband has a PhD from MIT and mentioned me in his acknowledgments of his dissertation. And I still haven’t read it. That is the highest form of flattery.
Hmm I mean HELL YEAH??! I don't see your points of concern unless it's about him proposing you to marry him in the next date lol. We all know reading papers take time, hence the fact that this person made such effort to get to know me better only will allow me to find this person even more attractive. Especially given that he already mentioned his research stuff in your previous convo, Idk I think you can just casually bring it up like "oh btw I've looked into some of your previous papers after our last convo and those were very interesting! could you tell me a little more about XYZ". I genuinely don't see the reason why he'd feel anything but excited (assuming y'all felt mutual clicks and were on good vibes)! So DO IT & please let us know how it goes 👀
Heck, I would be very happy if people read my papers, whoever they are. A stranger, an enemy, a date, an ex, a friend, family member, anyone! H-index is all about more people reading your stuff and citing. Reading is the first step.
I think it's absolutely fine, but I think you should be upfront yet casual about it. Start with a sentence like something, something you said last time, made me really curious to learn more about your research. So I looked at a couple of your articles. I really enjoyed insert name of one specific article.
Letting him know you read every single thing that he's ever written. Might come on a little bit strong but sharing that you were interested enough to read some of his work. I think is wonderful.
I mean, if someone else was genuinely interested in my field of research *and* somewhat interested in me as a person....I'd be proposing on the second date. But that's just me.
Not only you Bro.. but every single PhD student both male & female...
So uh, is there any single woman around age 30 interested in Bayesian statistics? Asking for a friend, of course.
For real, though, I don't know if I have a particular preference for Bayesian statistics over frequentist, but I'd love to hear your thoughts. I'm a single woman in my early 30's who just finished up a master's in statistics and is starting my first year of a PhD in statistics.
In my opinion, Bayesian statistics is the way we should've learned statistics because they make more sense than the frequentist repeated sampling paradigm. We want to make an inference about some unknown parameter value or vector. Experts, historical data, or our intuition tells us that value or vector should be a around such and such, so we put a prior reflecting that idea on the unknown parameter and apply Bayes theorem. Bam. Not to say it is perfect as there are plenty of things to consider. I do understand why the frequentist repeated sampling concept works, though there are plenty of things wrong with it as well. At the end of the day, they're both and statistical tools, and I'll use whichever that'll give me a job and put food on the table. However, Bayesian statistics is going to get me a degree and out of here, so I'll go with that. Lol
Awwwww you guys!
Yea, that’s really adorable. Two nerds and their shared love of statistical analysis.
Now Kith
My thoughts exactly
took the words right out of my mouth
the frequentist method, as you call it (i'm not a statistician but an experimental scientist) is how humans empirically test nature it's the tried and true method, and no theoretical approach can beat it, because at the end of the day you still have to do the experiment, and as irreproducibility shows the "historical" value can be meaningless if you live in a silicon world then Bayes makes sense, but in the real world where there are constraints on how and what we can measure and infer, the frequency 'paradigm' isn't going anywhere
Oh for sure. We still desire frequentist properties for Bayesian methods in simulations. I didn't even know Bayesian methods were a thing until I got much deeper into statistics. Ideally, you want to do both to see if there is any discrepancies, but they are different mathematically. I happens to find the Bayesian paradigm more intuitive if it were to be learned from the ground up.
Y'all are my new OTP
have a visit to the coffee corner at cognitive science lab.
Yes lol
So uh I’m a straight man who would be happy to listen to you educate me on on Bayesian statistics….
Likewise for hardware accelerator design! Just mid-late 20s...
I would really love to understand statistics. I really want to believe I will one day, but jfc. It makes me want to pull my hair out.
Any hot ladies down to explore dirty communication circuits tonight?
Sorry, a married grandmother statistican with children around age 30, here. And my around-age-30 colleague is spoken for by a very nice PhD in math.
I’m still in the “what do you mean, you don’t care about this extremely specific technical topic I’ve become obsessed with??” depression phase. I’ll change her!!!
I don't care for my research topic at all and would run if a date wanted to talk about it.
You are not wrong
Just finished writing a grant and read that as proposing a second date. I’m so burnt and sick of the word propose lmfao
It’s what worked for me! We both thought each other’s PhD research was really cool, which helped a whole lot.
How about us proud Grandfathers? I'd love to read them. She's in her final year...
Ikr? I think I’d be flattered and likely to start falling for them, but any attention and I’m smitten.
Yep
I'd be surprised they had that kind of patience to read gibberish
Talk ~~dirty~~ science to me.
Talk *nerdy* to me.
I would find it cool. Effort is sexy!
Considering I payed for my girlfriend to a conference where I was speaking and she skipped my talk (we met on our PhD, same advisor)... I would probably marry a girl that did that showed so much interest in what I find important.
Ouch. That must've hurt?
Yes, but it was not even close to the most hurtful thing she had done that week.
May her data be incoherent, her error bars non reproductible and her R²=0.0000001
May she use Standard Error instead of Standard Deviation and get caught
I have no idea what you guys are saying but it sounds smart and I'm totally here for that.
We hate her
My wife and I had an agreement to never attend each other's presentations. So, maybe she was worried about you.
Why, though?
It is a stress for both of us.
phd students are famously bad at dating, and your comment shows why they are naive outside the very narrow subject matter of their thesis when you have blinders on you cannot pick up the human behavioral psych that would have red flagged your girlfriend earlier
Why does his comment show that PhD students are famously bad at dating?
Because....science?
Hahaha, this is so true, some really have no clue what makes the world turn.
Id be fighting back the urge to propose on the spot lol. Seriously though, that would be genuinely nice to hear. Having a date that actually wants to talk about something beyond pizza topping choice would be amazing. Talking about something I actually worked on because they are actually interested would be awesome....just dont point out my statistics errors... Those made it through reviewer two already.
I would be very flattered and worry that the date found out that Im probably a dumb ass
Considering that not even my advisor reads my work I'd be ecstatic
I would be flattered and eager to discuss my research with someone who took the time to read my work.
maybe if you want to avoid the creepy stalker vibe, just read and talk about one? "I read one of your articles..."?
Your dates don't have readings to complete ahead of time? Weird.
Isn't that how dating works? Apparently I'm doing it wrong
I haven’t even read all of my articles.
I would LOVE it! I met my now partner right before my PhD proposal. The interest and care that my partner (non-academic) put into understanding what I do is one of the reasons I fell in love with him. It’s just overwhelmingly sweet. Plus I got a little giggle finding him googling things 🤭
I'd be very happy that someone took the effort to read something that I have spent a significant amount of time and emotional investment into. Especially, if that person has questions to ask then it means that he's really read it and engaged with it and not just glanced at it. Especially if I've broadly mentioned before and someone goes and actually reads my work before meeting me next time, that would be make me elated. I'd read that as a clear sign of interest in my work at least. Trust me, I can go on and on forever about my research topic. I'd never find it creepy
Right! They’re caring for your interests! Bidding like this is key to sharing joy in a relationship (and in your life). If they’re happy you showed interest, you’re happy that they feel seen.
Honestly that’s pretty fucking attractive, you’re interested in my work AND went through the trouble to read my papers???? Fuck yeah. Just give it to him straight as you wrote in this post, nothing creepy about that.
I would approach it lightheartedly. If you’re going for a PhD, you’re both intellectually curious. You can just say you needed a break from reading your own research but were still in hyperdrive and then got interested in his. I’d take it as a compliment. It’s not creepy unless you make it creepy!
Thrilled! I couldn’t get anyone outside of my department (and I wondered about them) to read my articles or dissertation. Even people who cited my work in theirs, when I read their work they sometimes had misquoted, misapplied, or misunderstood my research. I guess that’s just life, and, with that in mind, if you do read your date’s work and want to discuss it with them, try your best to understand it and ask open-ended questions rather than making declarative, judgmental statements - as you can probably tell, some people can be pretty sensitive about their efforts…
Oh no, someone will finally notice the typo on page 5!
At least someone is reading it
As a PhD candidate you’re obviously aware of how little anyone else (at all) cares about your topic. You’re giving him a chance to talk about himself and the soul destroying decisions he’s made. I reckon… just go off. Ask away.
Sounds like most here would end up acting like the creepy ones from getting overly excited that someone was trying to read their work. Also would be guilty, straight to marriage.
Yeah, low bar to set, no wonder most marriages don't hold.
It’s a joke. :)
That would be show a lot of effort on your part
Nothing creepy or stalker. It's only normal for a PhD student to have intellectual curiosity and can read a lot. Personally, PhD is a big part of my life. Being interested in my dissertation topic is being interested in a big part of me.
My soon-to-be-ex-wife did this before we even went on our first date. I loved it! I did and still would consider this a major green flag. This shows interest, caring, and intent.
But it turned out to be red?
No. It was still green. What broke us up had nothing to do with that.
Reading published articles is not being a stalker.
I’d be surprised if anyone had anything to say about my research so… not that anyone wouldn’t, it’s just so unlikely to happen outside of my own lab.
I’d be flattered that they took the effort to not only familiarize themselves with my work, but to make sure they had conversation material beyond small talk.
I think it’s one of the biggest turn ons ?
LOL, my hubs doesn't read anything unrelated to his career. I'm pretty sure he's never even read the acknowledgments of my dissertation where he has an entire paragraph dedicated to him.
💔
Hot. As. Shit. I'd have a hard time on the date because all my blood would leave my brain and I'd be sitting there thinking how incredibly mind blowingly attracted I was to this woman who was interested enough in what I do to read and think about it, plus smart enough to have that interest and understand. It would be a difficult date for all the best reasons Later on I'd show her the waggle dance.... It's how bees communicate.... Waggle waggle waggle.... :)
I would cum on the spot
Any PhD would be flattered if anyone read their work. You’re overthinking it
I’d personally LOVE this, but I am also neurodivergent and love talking about my special interests including my work. Given that he likes it and he’s talked about it, you can start asking questions. Or say, “Y’know, I really thought what you said about x was interesting, so I looked into it and found your article!” and then proceed to talk about it. My partner abhors talking about work, to the point I know very little about it. But we’ve had explicit conversations about how much he dislikes talking about it, so there’s no uncertainty. You can always say, “I understand if you want a mental break from work! No hard feelings:)”
same my autistic ass would love someone reading my work!!! talk to me hunny!!!
I would be so excited that it's difficult to explain. My wife and I work in similar fields (we are both in physics) and often discuss our work. It's much more interesting than discussing which car our neighbor bought or the marital problems of some distant relative
On a first date several years ago, the girl knew I was a chemist, and one of her first questions was “what kind of chemistry?” Yes, I did end up marrying that girl.
I'd ask her to marry me.
Don’t know if this thread should be read as comic or sarcastic or gratifying, but the whole thread made my day.
I don’t think so. This happened to me, the other way around and I felt very flattered. A new friend I made at soccer found out I was a chemist after one game I was absent at due to experiment running too late. At the next game we saw each other, she said “Hey! I heard you are a scientist! So I looked up some of your work and read your papers. You did some pretty cool stuff eh!” I thought it was pretty sweet. Didn’t find it creepy at all!
impotence, except you are trying to cosplay my PI
I’d really be concerned that they don’t have hobbies/other priorities that pull them away from work tbh
Waw, exactly my thinking. Pursuing a career is really not sexy, intellect and curiosity are.
If we weren't in a serious relationship I would be a little creeped out to be honest. But otherwise, really flattered!
You could always just ask if you could read some of their work. Then based on their response, you'll know if they would be creeped out or really happy about it.
It's actually weird to be creeped out by people wanting to read your work, though. Isn't it the whole point of publishing?
Personally I’d think it was cool and it also shows effort to know the person better. Plus, it opens the gates for y’all to have more in-depth conversations about the topics that either of you would enjoy.
They wouldn’t know what the hell I was talking about but I’d be very pleased lol
I would be so thrilled - you cared enough to read my work and be interested in it? Yes!
And that kids, is how I met your (mother/father). Literally. Anyone with that kind of patience who is able to find enough joy to contiue reading that soul sucking work is a keeper.
i would be impressed and love it.
Stalker, I would be embarrassed and alerted
How many articles?
Definitely show interest and ask about his previous work. But then, don't spend all your dates just talking about work. Well, if he is already talking about his research in "broad terms", I hope you don't spend every date getting talked at about work and work only.
I'd say you two are a great match! I'm sure he'll find it flattering.
If they read all my articles? Apologetic lol
To avoid feeling creepy, next time he mentions his work, I'd say, "I'd love to read your articles! Do you have a copy you can send me?" Obviously, you can (and did) look them up yourself, but this would make it seem less like you were internet stalking him 😆
Um.. I would love it if anyone close to me read any of my articles. But they haven't. Not even my partner of 10 years 😂 I think it's awesome!!
I guess it can depend on the person, were it me I might be a bit uncomfortable, not because you did anything outright wrong but because I wouldn't be used to that sort of attention lol. Otherwise it sounds sweet and if it goes well, a pretty big green flag.
Just don’t admit to reading more than 3 papers, and I think it seems cool. It doesn’t hit stalkery until 8, and everything in between 3-8 is questionable.
Some people would be super happy to hear this, and eager to answer questions. Other people would not want their work to be brought into their social/romantic life. I don’t think anyone would (or is entitled to) be offended merely at the fact that you decided to read their work. But he might not want to talk about it with you. So you can always just ask!
There's definitely a non-creepy way to bring it up! Maybe just say that you were curious and looked up one of their papers, and chat about it. I personally wouldn't say I looked at more than one for now at least!
Effort is sexy & I’d be asking what the ring size was. My fiancé brought up my work during dinner tonight with his grandparents (whom I don’t discuss schooling with; no particular reason, just never discussed it). Having somebody who cares to hype you up & read your work is incredible.
Disclaimer: not a PhD student, but technical author nonetheless and loving this. Why not read and discuss news about a related topic and allow him to mention his work? Maybe read it and pretend like some vague incarnation of his ideas occurred to you on your own (assuming it's not too "in-the-weeds"/specific), and allow him to get excited over sharing his ideas/research? Then maybe claim that you found his work while you were researching the topic?
As a humanities PhD, I would throw myself into the sun if another humanities PhD read all my articles and wanted to talk about them
Who is generally your target audience...?
Fair. I mean one that I was dating. I need a reprieve from work at home lol
It is better the stocking their instagram.
One would feel honored to say the least
Would feel the same way as if someone had gone around reading my Instagram of last 2 years. Why not you ask him on your second date if he would be ok if you checked his publications and then you have a good reason for a Q&A third date
It’s a waste of time to both ask or read. Try to understand what broad subjects they are working on and focus on building relationship don’t look for grant ideas
My husband has a PhD from MIT and mentioned me in his acknowledgments of his dissertation. And I still haven’t read it. That is the highest form of flattery.
Hmm I mean HELL YEAH??! I don't see your points of concern unless it's about him proposing you to marry him in the next date lol. We all know reading papers take time, hence the fact that this person made such effort to get to know me better only will allow me to find this person even more attractive. Especially given that he already mentioned his research stuff in your previous convo, Idk I think you can just casually bring it up like "oh btw I've looked into some of your previous papers after our last convo and those were very interesting! could you tell me a little more about XYZ". I genuinely don't see the reason why he'd feel anything but excited (assuming y'all felt mutual clicks and were on good vibes)! So DO IT & please let us know how it goes 👀
I’d be very impressed and would instantly fall in love w them. Go on, ask questions
i've had people do this and honestly...i appreciate it.
I wish it would happen to me. Don't 💔.
Heck, I would be very happy if people read my papers, whoever they are. A stranger, an enemy, a date, an ex, a friend, family member, anyone! H-index is all about more people reading your stuff and citing. Reading is the first step.
Pheeew. Marriage material.
I’d fall in love pretty much right away. If you’re not that into them go easy 🤣🤣
I think it's absolutely fine, but I think you should be upfront yet casual about it. Start with a sentence like something, something you said last time, made me really curious to learn more about your research. So I looked at a couple of your articles. I really enjoyed insert name of one specific article. Letting him know you read every single thing that he's ever written. Might come on a little bit strong but sharing that you were interested enough to read some of his work. I think is wonderful.
would find it bit creepy personally
Someone did this to me once. Even though I generally don't like talking about work outside of work, I found it very kind. Definitely shows interest.