Matt: My girlfriend and I have a long-standing difference of opinion. I live directly under Lindbergh Field's flight path. On most planes I can see a thin stream emanating from the wings as the planes …

Hi Matt: Why do light bulbs go poof when you turn them on, never while they're turned on and burning and having been on for hours? Maybe some expire in use in an abandoned garage, …

Matt: At what age do you discontinue use of the term "Master" to address correspondence to a young man? Thank you. -- Roseann Schoen, the net Ms. Schoen, I'd say when you get to 95 …

Help, Matt: Every day I read my horoscope in the paper. But I've just heard that somebody's discovered many new planets. Does that mean that everybody's horoscope is now wrong? What am I going to …

Matthew: Why do some people have a white moon on their fingernails and others don't? Does this mean you're lacking something in your diet or that you might have a health problem? -- Moonless, Ramona …

Dear Matthew: I can understand how the odor molecules get to our odor sensors, and I can understand that these sensors send the signals directly to our brain. But I cannot understand what are the …

Hello there, oh great one: Where does the phrase "break a leg" come from? One source says it may have come from the whole incident with Abraham Lincoln and John Wilkes Booth. The same source …

Hi Matt: Do cats sweat? If not, how do they stay cool in this hot weather? -- Curious of North Park Ugh. Summer. Under our recent extreme conditions, Grandma and the elves have taken to …

Dear Matthew Alice: Any time you see judges on TV they're always whamming away on their desks with gavels. I've never ever seen a real judge use one. Do real judges ever use their gavels? …

Hey Matt: Who has been shooting bullets into our sidewalks? Everywhere I go downtown I see these round metal things embedded in the sidewalk that look like bullet casings. What are they? -- Matt Too, …

Matt: I have to know where those "Siamese twin" cherries come from-- you know, two fruits, one stem? -- Judith, San Diego We've meddled with cherry genetics enough that some of the resulting cultivars exhibit …

Matt: Sometimes in the afternoon I take a nap to feel fresh for evening classes. However, when I wake up,. I'm often very nauseated and wish I'd just stayed awake. Other people have told me …

Dearest Matthew: I remember seeing a sign somewhere that said it was National Letter Writing Week. How would I go about designating a week of my own? Could I just as easily make National PMS …

Heymatt: Why do dogs wag their tails when they're happy? -- Dave, La Jolla Uh, Dave, dogs also wag their tails when they're pissed, so we'd better clear up this mystery before some Dobie takes …

Matt: Why do whales have barnacles but dolphins, porpoises, and orcas do not? -- Barnacle Bill the Sailor Whale of a generalization, Bill, but sorta true. Barnacles are common on humpbacks and gray whales, but …

Hi, Matt: You sometimes hear about people amputating their own leg or arm in an emergency. That makes me wonder. Has a surgeon ever performed surgery on himself? -- Lois, San Diego Sez the American …

Hey Matt: I have a special talent that nobody else I know has. I can write backwards without even thinking about it, with all the letters reversed. My friend says there might be something wrong …

Hey Matt: When I recently drove through Utah, I noticed that "regular" grade gasoline (in addition to costing a lot less) is 85 octane, not 87 like it is here. I thought this was maybe …

Hey Matt: What makes sauce lumpy? Or better yet, what is a guaranteed way to mix something like flour and water and never have lumps? -- Jerry in San Diego Grandma is teary eyed. Someone …

Hey Matt: I was watching the NY Yankees vs. the Atlanta Braves this Wednesday and one of the graphics showed a list of the injured Braves and their injuries. Amongst all of the twisted ankles, …

Matthew Alice: I've seen signs along the roads leading to San Diego stating that the elevation is 11 feet. Exactly where is the spot where the measurement was taken? Or is it an average elevation: …

Hey, Matt: Seeing my homemade ice cubes cloud up my gin and tonic is a bummer. O sage of San Diego, is it possible to make clear ice cubes at home? If your answer is …

Dear Matthew: I've noticed something weird on our local TV news stories on courtroom appearances by alleged criminals. When the arrestee is standing up in front of the judge at arraignment, they often have their …

Hi Matt: I see "tribute" bands in the Reader all the time (Steely Damned, a Steely Dan tribute band; Iron Maidens, female Iron Maiden tribute band, etc.). Do these bands have to get approval from …

Hello: I received a phone call on my cell phone from 999-999-9999. They kept calling and calling, and for a while I only got dead air when I answered. However once when I answered a …

Dear Matt: In my college days it was "common knowledge" that a sharp rap on a cold beer would "reinfuse" the carbonation and prevent the foam and spray when the can was opened. Any truth …

Dear Matthew: On my way to work the other day, I was watching what I think were seagulls flying in a V formation. I've seen ducks and geese do this, but it suddenly occurred to …

Hey, Matt: In the summer my thermometer in the open sun reads 110 to 120 degrees while the news reports 90 to 100. How do they get such low readings? Do they put their thermometers …

Hey, Matt! Baby animals are so cute I am sad when I eat them. It's fun to watch them play. What about the birds and the bees? Do hatchling insects, ornithoids, and reptilians play? Fireball, …

Dear Matt: When I opened my wallet this morning, I pulled out a dollar and noticed it had a little star printed on it, right after the serial number. None of my other dollars has …

Matthew: First of all, what do Tropicana and Minute Maid and companies like that do with all the orange peels they generate? Is there a use for them? Second, why is orange juice in containers …

Heymatt: When my daughter was a child, she had an ant farm. I thought it had a hospital and a cemetery. Do ants have hospitals and cemeteries? Naomi, the net Were they out behind the …

Dear Matt: If California is the Golden State, why is Nevada the Silver State? Shouldn't it be called the Silvery State? Or should we be known as the Gold State? Worried in North County Heymatt: …

Hey, Matt: I picked up a Gatorade bottle off the street with some liquid in it. When I unscrewed the cap to dump the liquid out, it exploded. The cap blasted off with a bang, …

Matt: The other day I was crossing the street when some guy in his flashy car practically kneecapped me. As he went by I gave him my best glare, and he yelled back, No crosswalk. …

Dear Almighty Matt: Okay, here's the deal. I, along with many of my fellow Americans, have a strange fascination with beer. I mean, what's better than beer? Not much. Well, the other night I was …

Hey Matt: Something I've been always wondering. Is there an average percent of human feces every time a person goes to the bathroom (in lbs., oz., etc.)? And if there is, can you notice the …

Dear Matthew: It seems that whenever I have contact with the Los Angeles news media (KNX radio or the Los Angeles Times) I often come across the terms "Southland" and "Inland Empire." No one I've …

Heymatt: Here's a question I've considered since high school, have done considerable research on, have asked law enforcement about, and have received many answers to. Is it legal to possess and/or sell balloons full of …

From: Loser, posted to M.A. Comments board: you guys have no information on how water finds its own level PLEASE GET SOME IT'S FOR MY SCIENCE EXPERIMENT Googling has now officially replaced thinking. A student …

Hello, Matt: Each 12-ounce beer bottle says "10 cent CRV refund." When I took about 200 saved-up bottles to a recycle place, to my surprise, they did not count the bottles, just dumped them in …

Matt: In August '06, I received a birthday card that sang to me "The Age of Aquarius" by the Fifth Dimension. The dang thing's still singing. Since then I've talked to friends whose singing cards …

Matt: My phone is listed on the do-not-call registry. Yet it seems that every candidate for the 50th Congressional seat has called my house to urge me to vote for them. Okay, I think it …

Hey Matt: Please help! Roaches are everywhere! I've tried everything to try to get rid of them. I know you'll have a good solution. I just know it. Adrian, San Diego I think you have …

Heymatt: I love chocolate-covered cherries, but I can't figure out how they make them. Do they cover the cherry with chocolate and then squirt the juice in there somehow? Do they make the top, put …

Dear Matthew Alice: I just borrowed another 20 bucks from my dad. The 20 in question had red dye along one edge. Was it involved in a bank robbery� you know, exploding dye packs and …

Matt: The hatred of women is misogyny, but what about the hatred of men? Lovers of All, San Diego An interesting commentary, when we all know misogyny but not its male counterpart. The word isn't …

Matt: Back in the mid-1970s I lived in San Diego. While I was there I discovered the Home Grown albums that were produced yearly by radio station KGB. I purchased one every year until I …

Dear Matt: Is my paper-chewing habit killing me? For years I've been tearing off fingernail-sized bits from legal pads, computer paper, note cards, paper napkins, and an occasional Reader movie review, chewing them into paper …

Heymatt: Why do stores south of the border have such an abundance of vanilla extract for sale? The world wonders. Mark, Ocean Beach Well, at any rate, you wonder, Mark. I'm more likely to wonder …