Interview with Michael Aten, History 150 Spring 2020, Conducted by Jess Aten, 4/11/2020.

 

Michael is a 16-year-old high schooler who attends McLean Highschool in McLean, Virginia. He was born in Oxford, Mississippi and moved to Virginia with his family when he was fifth grade. He is my [Jess Aten’s] younger brother. He is an avid gamer and reader, and he is in theater as well as his school’s dnd [Dungeons and Dragons] club. In addition, he occasionally helps out with the chess club, despite not being a member.

Research

Coronaviruses belong to the family Coronaviridae, which are viruses that are positive sense and single-stranded RNA viruses. While coronaviruses typically only affect mammals and birds, they can still transfer to humans, though typically symptoms of such a virus manifest in manners similar to the common cold (Syed Faraz Ahmed). However, the COVID-19 virus has symptoms similar to the flu, and is thought to be a relative of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) coronaviruses.

The COVID-19 virus first appeared in December of 2019 in Wuhan in China, specifically starting at what’s called a “wet” market where live animals are sold. Bats are considered the most likely source for the coronavirus despite no bats being sold at the market in addition to bats hibernating at the time when the pandemic first gain traction (Brüssow). However, it is possible that bats were sold illegally at the market, in addition to snakes, which are also being considered in discussions of where the virus came from (Wang).

Sources

Brüssow, Harald. “The Novel Coronavirus – A Snapshot of Current Knowledge.” Microbial Biotechnology, vol. 13, no. 3, May 2020, pp. 607–612. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1111/1751-7915.13557.

Syed Faraz Ahmed, et al. “Preliminary Identification of Potential Vaccine Targets for the COVID-19 Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) Based on SARS-CoV Immunological Studies.” Viruses, no. 3, 2020, p. 254. EBSCOhost, doi:10.3390/v12030254.

Wang, Weier, et al. “Updated Understanding of the Outbreak of 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019‐nCoV) in Wuhan, China.” Journal of Medical Virology, vol. 92, no. 4, Apr. 2020, p. 441. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=cookie,ip,cpid,athens,shib&custid=s8863137&db=edb&AN=141824054&site=eds-live&scope=site.

Transcription

Michael Aten  0:00  

Hey, no, I’m actually not.

Jess Aten  0:02  

So, hello my name is Jess Aten, and I am here interviewing my little brother, Michael Aten, about the COVID-19 virus, and how he has dealt with the self-isolation, uh, resulting from that virus.

Michael Aten  0:19  

Name’s Jessica, wild I didn’t hear about this. [sarcastic]

Jess Aten  0:22  

Alright, so, Michael, let’s start, uh, tell us a little bit about yourself.

Michael Aten  0:27  

Well, I’m Michael, I’m Jessica’s little brother. That is my existence. No, there’s a little bit more about me but, you know, no one cares.

Jess A  0:34  

You, give a biography.

Michael Aten  0:36  

Great, well I’m from Mississippi. I was born there, and then I moved to Virginia in fifth grade, and now I’m here, I’m in high school, as an 11th grader, and just kind of having to deal with junior year but at home. And that’s inconvenient. But we’ll talk about that later, I suppose.

Jess Aten  0:53  

Okay. So, uh, my first question. My first proper question for you is, what did you first think of the virus when it first started being talked about?

Michael Aten  1:04  

My first proper answer is that I didn’t really take notice. I’ll be honest. It was a thing that existed, and I was like huh, that’s inconvenient. Hope, very few people, if any, die. And then I had to start worrying more, now didn’t I?

Jess Aten  1:22  

Yeah. All right. What were your thoughts and feelings when you first started to self isolate?

Michael Aten  1:28  

Hmm. Well, logically I was very okay with it, you know, I’m a gamer I like to say inside, that’s kind of what I do, but, on the other hand, I’m very extroverted and the only extrovert within this family, so it’s a little hard for me to just stay inside all day and not do anything, except for, you know, play some video games read books or cook or whatever.

Jess Aten  1:53  

So you would say this has had like a substantial impact on your social life.

Michael Aten  1:58  

I mean if you’re forcing me to answer a question in such a pre arranged manner to make it sound official, then yes.

Jess Aten  2:04  

How is it, how is your social life changed since you started to self isolate?

Michael Aten  2:11  

I used to never check my phone. Now I check my phone once every three hours. This is the only change. No, this is wrong. No, I, I’m calling a lot more. I’m checking in with my friends. I’m making sure that everyone’s okay. It’s especially hard with a lot of my friends who are seniors, because, you know, I won’t exactly get a heartfelt goodbye, now will I? So, all I’ve had to do is just reestablish connections and make sure that we can reach out once the virus is over and then we can have a proper goodbye.

 

Jess Aten  2:41  

It’s good. It’s good that you’re planning that. Um, so your school is still keeping up classes right?

Michael Aten  2:49  

That’s debatable. Really.

Jess Aten  2:51  

How have they gone about doing so?

Michael Aten  2:54  

Hmm, nothing yet really, I’ll be honest, uh, classes are supposed to start in three days, but it’s supposed to be just a combination of synchronous and asynchronous education, but most of the content is optional. Though, optional is in quotes because, come on, this is high school, you’re going to need that information for next year. But, let’s be real, I’m not sure any of the teachers are going to be pushing that very hard. They’ll probably feel really bad. So, this is mostly optional content I mean I’m still gonna do it, because that’s the kind of person I am. It’s just, you know, classes are non-existent at the moment. All that’s available is optional content, and when classes do start, well, they’re only two times a day. Nope, that’s wrong, that, two times a week. Goodness gracious me who needs English. Clearly not me having not go to an English class, but I digress.

Jess Aten  3:47  

But you mentioned before that your Latin teacher is planning some interesting online content, could you tell us a little bit about that?

Michael Aten  3:56  

I would love to because he fills me with joy. Uh, my Latin teacher, Dr Grissom, is really awesome he has a PhD in sensor Pretty Hot Darn it. But, his words not mine. However, he’s going a different direction. Instead of doing a Blackboard Collaborate or Google Classroom assignments, he decided to open up a Minecraft server, stream it on Twitch, and ask anyone and everyone if they want to join and, as an optional Latin grade, which will count as a project if it’s done do something Italy or Roman related within Minecraft. So you could like build, build a small town, you know, reconstruct a historical site, perhaps reenact a battle or occasion, or perhaps just decorate and celebrate a specific day or festival. It’s a very interesting way to engage a lot of your students and get them to do something that they probably wouldn’t have done if you just ask them to make a replica or something. 

Jess Aten  5:01  

You’re, you’re looking at like-

Michael Aten  5:04  

Poignantly looks at project that Jessica had to made for Latin. Had to made for Latin indeed.

Jess Aten  5:10  

Pantheon. Uh, replica.

Michael Aten  5:12  

Pantheon.

Jess Aten  5:13  

It watches over us.

Michael Aten  5:14  

Yes, instead of making a real Pantheon, we get to make a virtual fake Pantheon with the power of flight and imagination.

Jess Aten  5:21  

What were you planning on doing for this project?

Michael Aten  5:23  

 I was planning on reenacting some of Caesar’s conquests via armor stands and command blocks. I still have yet to get permission from him as he says, quote, I’m not entirely sure I trust you to command blocks, which is fair considering I’m one of the larger troublemakers within the class, but he loves me anyway. And I love him, Dr. Grissom. And you know, some other teachers are trying. Most are failing. It’s Blackboard Collaborate but let’s be real, it’s not gonna work. My algebra teacher has done little to nothing. The last email they sent was five words and none of them were capitalized. It was just here is the blackboard link and that was hyperlinked. And, you know, that, that’s something I got to deal with, but Sure, sure.

Jess Aten  6:19  

Um, so, how is your. How is your schedule changed since you’ve started to self-isolate and how do you think it will change once your classes start?

Michael Aten  6:30  

Well, I’ve started going to bed at two and waking up at 10, instead of going to bed at nine and waking up at six. This is the major change and I know that you’ve been plagued by it.

Jess Aten  6:41  

Would you like to clarify that you’re going to bed at 2am.

Michael Aten  6:45  

No, no, I don’t think I would. [joking] Yes, yes, I’m going to bed at 2am and waking up at 10am. I used to go to bed at like nine or 10pm and waking up at six, so I can make breakfast for myself. But, you know, now I don’t have to do that. I suppose that this will change by an hour once classes, you know, start. Because I’m just gonna roll up into my English class with a frozen waffle halfway in mouth and no one’s gonna judge me because they’ve learned to expect nothing from me at this point. They just know that I get my work done on time and with quality and all my other quirks can be, you know, considered as a benefits, shall we say.

Jess Aten  7:29  

A benefit.

Michael Aten  7:30  

A bonus. No, I may be hazardous and, you know, a troublemaker but I get the work done, and I help others get their work done. So, it all works out.

Jess Aten  7:41  

Do you think you’ll struggle with, uh, your schoolwork?

Michael Aten  7:43  

 No.

Jess Aten  7:45  

No?

Michael Aten  7:46  

No.

Jess Aten  7:47  

No.

Michael Aten  7:48  

Why, would I? It’s just going to be easier, due to the fact that, while I mean, this is an official paper, but, I hate to break it to you, it’s gonna be very easy to cheat. Not that I like cheating. I, I’ve only ever cheated once, and that was in Mississippi. I don’t like doing it. I’m just saying that it’s an option, and that it’s going to be incredulously hard to regulate. Like, even AP tests with their cursor trackers you can just. Everyone has a phone nowadays you can just look up the answers on your phone. It’s going to be supremely easy to cheat and circumvent a lot of things, but aside from immoral solutions, moral solutions are going to be easier because you, you don’t have, like, designated time. I suppose this might be hard for people who have a rough time with, you know, handling things, let’s say, without deadlines or, rather, loose deadlines- perhaps in asterisks or quotations. 

Jess Aten  8:44  

This is a personal callout.

Michael Aten  8:46  

It sure is. But, uh, no, I think the work’s just gonna get easier, really, I imagine that the teachers aren’t gonna want to stress anything. They’re just gonna try to help people throughout this “crisis.”

Jess Aten  9:00  

It is a crisis.

Michael Aten  9:00  

Okay there’s a crisis. Oh, for those who are not looking at this dynamic, I just did crisis in quotations. You know, I suppose that may be a later question. But, you know, it’s not really a crisis for me, now is it? The worst thing I had to do is stay inside and not touch my friends physically. I can’t give hugs, that’s about it. And that’s the worst thing that’s happened to me, everything else is kind of minimal. I get to sleep in as much as I want, I get to make breakfast whenever I want. I’m not really stressing out about school because I can get, I can get the work done whenever I feel like it. It’s not like it’s going to go anywhere. There’s no deadline. So I just designate a day and say hey every Wednesday I’m gonna get all the schoolwork I have to do done. [Michael claps] Can we have asterisks claps? Is that, is that something we can add?

 

Jess Aten  9:48  

Yeah, I can, I can put that brackets. 

 

Michael Aten  9:49  

Excellent.

Jess Aten  9:51  

All right, so do you, so after this event, do you think, uh, schools will change the way they do coursework?

Michael Aten  10:00  

Event. [Michael laughs] Special Events seasonal, limited time only – get online and get your holiday bonus! [joking] Honestly, though, what video games are doing right now. Oh, stay at home, all champions are free or whatever. Get bonus XP for playing our video game and not going outside. Good for you – you socially isolated! But to answer your question, I find that unlikely. I think the only thing that’s going to change is a slightly increased aptitude for technology because teachers are forced to adapt. And they’re no longer able to say I bad with technology, which is a whole different thing cuz, you know, you can’t really make the excuse that you’re bad with technology nowadays. It’s everywhere. Just like how you say if you’re bad with names, like sure, you may be bad with it. Learn! Get better! Adapt with the times! I know that sounds very childish of me, perhaps petulant in some way, but it’s not entirely incorrect. But I digress. No, things will likely not change, I think, increased aptitude of technology, and perhaps, perhaps more awareness towards people being sick or ill or unable to come to school for long periods of time. I think people who get like, you know, pneumonia or the flu during winter and have it stay at home for two and a half weeks or a month or whatever, will be much easier to keep a handle on and keep up with their schoolwork then before.

Jess Aten  11:36  

Yeah, you have experience with the pneumonia.

Michael Aten  11:39  

Boy, do I. Don’t even, ugh, for reference, I had pneumonia in seventh grade for three weeks, and, when I came back, I was very behind, and I almost failed. So, thanks winter, I hate you.

Jess Aten  11:53  

So do you, do you think in the future, they might act, they might be more able to give those kinds of give online accommodations, accommodations to students who might need them either for, uh, being sick out, out sick for three weeks, or for medical reasons, or for other medical reasons or mental illness.

Michael Aten  12:14  

You know, I really wish you would stop asking these questions which are designated to corral me into an answer and make me sound like an absolute jerk if I say no. Like, don’t do this, just, just let me say my answers to the question and then – don’t have me boil it down to one simple yes or no because it’s more nuanced than that. Life isn’t white and black we can’t just like – they’re grays!

Jess Aten  12:38  

You can extrapolate on your answers.

Michael Aten  12:39  

Oh, I can extrapolate. Fine. Get on with it. I see your lined paper. Don’t think I don’t. You didn’t even bring a clipboard to this.

 

Jess Aten  12:51  

Are you gonna answer my, your the question?

 

Michael Aten  12:53  

Fine. Yes, sure. 

 

Jess Aten  12:56  

Do you want to expand on that?

 

Michael Aten  12:57  

No. [Michael and Jess laugh]

 

Jess Aten  13:01  

All right, so as, like, a kind of final question, how do you think the world might change after, like, the world in general, not just a school change, after this experience.

 

Michael Aten  13:12  

Oh boy, this is a big boy question.

 

Jess Aten  13:14  

Yes, big boy question.

 

Michael Aten  13:15  

Hm. Well, we, I’ve certainly thought about it a lot. I have what I want to change, but more than likely, it won’t change. My hope is that we become much more, shall we say, proficient at acting upon epidemics or pandemics. I want the world at large to be more cognizant of the issues, even if it’s in another country, and be able to act appropriately, rather than, you know, letting it spread. It’s easier to stop a boulder if it’s rolling up a hill rather than down because momentum. I really hope that will because originally in the 1920s, there was the Spanish Flu [sic, the Spanish flu occurred in 1918] which wasn’t really Spanish, but that’s pedantism. Uh, but we installed practices which were designated around responding to pandemics, and this is the first time that they’re being tested, and they’re less than adequate. I wouldn’t say woefully inadequate but neither would I’d say they’re performing up to code. I wish we’ll put more, you know, thought, and care into how we handle pandemics because, here’s the thing about emergency preparedness – you don’t need it, except when you do. And a lot of people think that that will never happen. Well, look what’s happening! Emergencies happen. Pandemics happen. We need to account for them because, if we think of it like this, they will always eventually happen. It’s best to be prepared now then have to deal with a boulder that’s rolling down a mountain and say well we got to stop it, hundred million people are gonna get crushed and die but, you know, what it’s worth it. We could have done it with zero casualties, or perhaps, like, five. But instead, we didn’t act quickly enough, we didn’t have enough, you know, infrastructure and resources available to us to combat this. Personally, I would like to, you know, once this is all over, maybe get a CDC officer in various important locations and countries across the world, or maybe have, like, a set of guidelines or emergency preparedness rules or, like, uh, an override, or an objection that we’re able to do to just, like, you know, no matter what, no matter who is in charge, no matter what the Senate or the House, whatever legislative, judicial, or executive body says, just hit up on all three agree – Yes, this needs to stop now. Just like give the CDC a button that says this is a problem.

Jess Aten  15:47  

Yeah.

Michael Aten  15:47  

Treat it like a problem! Because, uh, we didn’t really take it seriously. I didn’t take it seriously until it hit the US, and even when it hit the US, I was just, like, oh, couple of fringe cases in, like, you know, Quebec or something who really cares. Nope, nope, not Quebec, more than Quebec, much more than Quebec. This Quebec’s probably freaking out right now because they’ve heard their name incanted three times and now there are storm clouds hovering over them telling them that they’re being in incanted and summoned. I’ve summoned the entirety of Quebec, fear me. Oh, look, they’re here, interesting, but we’ll keep the Frost Giants in the kitchen for now, but, uh, oh, the Northwind Aurelius [the North Wind of Greek mythology] is here too. That’s fantastic. I love Quebec. I don’t. It’s filled with Frenchmen. [joking] I digress. I didn’t take this very seriously, and your professor, whoever is in charge, it probably gonna hate this. And, uh, that’s your problem.

Jess Aten  16:49  

I’m not being graded on what you say. I’m being great on my questions

Michael Aten  16:53  

Bout to say, what, what are you being graded on then?

Jess Aten  16:56  

Questions and research.

Michael Aten  16:58  

Great. Well, you did, you did your homework. You didn’t bite your mother’s hand as you took a bath, you just kind of, you let it happen. Great. I’m very proud of you.

Jess Aten  17:06  

So do you have anything else you might, you want to say about the situation at hand or how you handle it?

Michael Aten  17:12  

Listen, I’m a teenager, I have no idea what I’m doing. I’m kind of just relying on, you know, mother to do all the work for me. All I have to do is stay inside all day. What do you think I’m going to do? Cause some major cultural upheaval? You have some wonderful advice, say, hey, you know what you should do? You should listen to me repeat the same thing 500 times that everyone else has said, which just stay inside, you absolute mongrels. Like, no, we already know, stay inside, be safe, even if it sucks. Because, you know, I want to hug my friends, I want to platonic cuddle, I want to give high fives, I want to, you know, listen, it ain’t gay if you say, if you’re wearing socks, like just like, you know. There’s really nothing to say because CDC has already said most of it for me. I think the best I can say is, uh, please don’t die. It’s good policy.

Jess Aten  18:02  

Don’t die.

Michael Aten  18:02  

Don’t die. 

Jess Aten  18:03  

Don’t die.

Michael Aten  18:04  

It’s a policy that I follow every day. It hasn’t failed me yet.

Jess Aten  18:08  

Not dead yet!

Michael Aten  18:11  

You need, you need to learn how to breathe. I guarantee you, I’ve been breathing, my entire life. Yes, but you breathing wrong, you need to relearn how to breathe. No.

 

Jess Aten  18:22  

That’s what Martial Arts is like.

 

Michael Aten  18:23  

Honestly though, like, yeah.

 

Jess Aten  18:26  

Alright, so thank you so much for doing this interview with me.

 

Michael Aten  18:30  

I hope whoever is reading this frickin log is an absolute nerd being forced by their English professor to go through old logs 50 years in the future, just grumbling to themselves why you have to read about this stupid idiot who took this interview so casually, and you’re simultaneously frustrated that you’ve been forced this assignment upon you, but at the same time you’re laughing your butt off because some idiot 50 years ago decided to troll you by giving a very casual and loose interview,

Jess Aten  18:57  

It’ll probably be a year in the future.

Michael Aten  18:59  

Oh, a year, a whole year, I’m so proud. Well good luck to you future students and professors who want to lose their, like. collective minds trying to dissect an idiot.

Jess Aten  19:11  

You’re not an idiot.

Michael Aten  19:13  

Oh, I think that’s very kind of you. I’m a fool.

Jess Aten  19:17  

All right, thank you so much for your input and, uh –

 

Michael Aten  19:21  

Input.

 

Jess Aten  19:23  

And the information you’ve given us. 

 

Michael Aten  19:25  

Oh, do I get insight too, make my ego bigger, I need my ego inflation. Come on, boy.

 

Jess Aten  19:29  

I appreciate your, your, uh, willingness to do this interview. Thank you very much.

 

Michael Aten  19:34  

You didn’t have anyone else, did you?

 

Jess Aten  19:35  

I did.

 

Overview of the interview process

This interview was done in person, and I did have to adjust the transcript quite a bit to make certain it was accurate to the audio. I used Otter.ai for both the transcription and the audio file with the usage of my laptop. I prepared a time when my younger brother and I were free.

 

How did the interview go

I think, if I were to change some things that I did, I might ask a few more specific questions. However, I did feel the interview flowed, even if we occasionally got off-track. Given how much of a jokester Michael, I’m pretty happy with him giving reasonably detailed serious answers, even if he did often make jokes through the interview. I feel the divergences were generally positive ones, as I feel they showcased the dynamic my younger brother and I have with each other when we talk casually, and that’s a good way of depicting what kind of person Michael is, which may assist in contextualizing his interview answers.