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Yeah, the only thing about this that has to do with education is that it's a textbook example of email harvesting. You set up an inbox, ask people to forward stuff to it for 'study'.. then you set up a simple script that pulls out any strings conting *@*.* ... suddenly you have hundreds of emails which can be sold to advertisers for profit.
Best thing to do is to ignore it.
As to viruses, it is possible to get a virus from opening an email under the right circumstances. The two possibilities are via an OE exploit or via an IE exploit. I can't list any off the top of my head, but from time to time an exploit will come out in Internet Explorer that allows someone to run malicious code via a website being displayed. You can embed stuff like that in an email. The alternative is Outlook Express, which through unsecure settings can be made to open attachments and what-not automatically. If you don't use either of those programs you're probably safe, so long as you don't open any attachments.
I still don't open emails from unknown senders for the simple fact that it's not worth my time. If I don't know who's sending me something it's probably spam and can safely be ignored.
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I wake up in the morning more tired than before I slept
I get through cryin' and I'm sadder than before I wept
I get through thinkin' now, and the thoughts have left my head
I get through speakin' and I can't remember, not a word that I said
- Ben Harper, Show Me A Little Shame
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