Hey, Answer Girl -

When I buy a cup of coffee from my favorite drive-through kiosk, and blow through the little opening at the top of the container, does it really cool the coffee down at all? Or is the effect purely psychological?

- Pat

The simple answer: yeah, it works, at least according to scientific theory.

The first law of thermodynamics says energy can be changed from one form to another, but it can't be created or destroyed.

Heat is a form of energy, and when your coffee is served, the hottest particles are at the top of the cup - they're faster-moving than cooler particles and they evaporate faster, so they're almost literally leaping off the surface of the cup. These particles gather in a cloud of warm vapor above the cup, so when you blow across the little opening, you're blowing away the hottest of the particles, clearing way for more hot particles to leave the coffee; thus, cooling it.

Hey, Answer Girl -

A while back, your paper ran a story about a leakage survey completed by Casper/Natrona International Airport. The information from this study was passed along to the airlines, at which point I noticed a sizeable drop in fares, but now most if not all of the fares have risen back to their pre-study levels. Just wondering why that is ….

- M.G.

The airline industry - like many industries in the struggling world economy - is fighting as hard as it can to stay afloat. That may be a major reason for airlines pricing flights higher than they may have otherwise, said Glen Januska, Airport Manager for Casper/Natrona County International Airport.

"We're talking about an industry that's suffering," Januska said. "It's a real turbulent time for them."

The leakage survey released by the airport to airlines said the high price of flying out of Casper made people fly out of Denver or Billings instead, losing money for the airport and the airlines.

"It's hard to know why they're doing it," Januska said. "The airlines have to price the fares according to how they think they'll make the most profit."

If the economy had stayed strong and fuel prices had been even or predictable, the leakage survey may have had a more lasting impact, Januska said.

And while the airlines aren't paying as much attention to Natrona County's small market as he would like, the airport does continue to work with the airlines and point out numbers like leakage.

"We can bring the information, but we can't make them price it as we want them to," he said.

The airport will meet with the airlines again in the first week of March.

Contact reporter Megan Lee at (307) 266-0616 or megan.lee@trib.com. Read her Answer Blog at trib.com/blog.

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Answer Girl tackles questions about Casper, the universe and everything else. Submit your questions by e-mail to megan.lee@trib.com, or call Megan Lee at 266-0616. You can also write to Answer Girl, Box 80, 170 Star Lane, Casper, WY, 82602.