About nine thousand tech workers in the Seattle area have lost their jobs in the past year. That could be nine thousand people competing for a shrinking pool of tech jobs.

This year started off with the most layoffs we’ve seen in a January since the Great Recession, and the lowest hiring on record. Many companies are now citing artificial intelligence in their layoff announcements.

On today's episode, where have all the laid off tech workers gone? And what can the rest of us learn from the first shock in the AI earthquake?

Do you have an idea for a Booming episode? Give us a call at (206) 221-7158 and leave a voicemail. You can also email us at booming@kuow.org.

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/boomingnotes.

Booming is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is Carol Smith. Our producers are Lucy Soucek and Alec Cowan. Our hosts are Joshua McNichols and Monica Nickelsburg.

Support the show: https://kuow.org/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How do we decide who gets financial support from the government? Usually, it comes down to the federal poverty line.

You might think a lot of data and research goes into establishing that number. But in reality, it’s much squishier. So squishy in fact that it involves Jello...

Today, a special episode brought to us by our friends at Control F: the surprising history of the federal poverty line.

Sources in this episode:

• U.S. Census Bureau Timeline of Poverty Measure, 2014
• How the U.S. Census Bureau Measures Poverty, 2022
• What does living at the poverty line look like?, USA Facts, 2023
• Poverty Guidelines vs Poverty Thresholds, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• Poverty Line Matrix, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2026
• Remembering Mollie Orshansky — The Developer of the Poverty Thresholds, Society Security Administration, 2008
• Relatively Deprived, New Yorker, 2006
• Mollie Orshansky, Statistician, Dies at 91, The New York Times, 2007
• Mollie Orshansky: Inventor of the Poverty Line, NPR, 2007
• Thrifty Food Plan, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 2021
• Thrifty Food Plan: Better planning and accountability could help ensure quality of future reevaluations, U.S. Government Accountability Office Report to Congressional Requesters, 2022
• Family Food Plans and Food Costs, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1962
• The Indians in the Lobby, Season 3, Episode 8, The West Wing, 2001
• NPR audience call out on SNAP benefits, 2025
• Legacies of the War on Poverty, The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political & Social Science, 2024

Control F wants to answer your questions about how our world works! Click here to submit a question using their online form, or email the team at ControlF@kuow.org

Do you have a tip for the Booming team? Give us a call at (206) 221-7158 and leave a voicemail. You can also email us at booming@kuow.org.

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/boomingnotes.

Booming is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is Carol Smith. Our producers are Lucy Soucek and Alec Cowan. Our hosts are Joshua McNichols and Monica Nickelsburg.

Support the show: https://kuow.org/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For the first time ever, cities across Mexico, Canada, and the United States will be sharing the world’s most viewed sporting event... the FIFA men’s World Cup.

But sports economists will tell you, the cost of hosting these games isn't always worth the reward.

On today's episode, will the World Cup be an economic win for the city?

GUEST:
Lynnette Buffington, chief of staff for the Seattle Metro Chamber of Commerce

Do you have a question for the Booming team? Give us a call at (206) 221-7158 and leave a voicemail. You can also email us at booming@kuow.org.

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/boomingnotes.

Booming is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is Carol Smith. Our producers are Lucy Soucek and Alec Cowan. Our hosts are Joshua McNichols and Monica Nickelsburg.

Support the show: https://kuow.org/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.