The sound of a soda can cracking open is something many of us know well. But have you ever thought about the mechanics behind the can opening? We at Sip & Savor hadn’t until we saw this amazingly informative article from TechInsider.

According to Bill Hammack, an engineer at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, it’s all physics. Here is how he breaks it down:

“Pulling a soda-can tab exerts force on the rivet, which in this case is the load you want to move. This lets you vent the pressurized can. But something remarkable happens the moment you vent the can: The tab becomes a first-class lever, in which the force you apply changes direction around the fulcrum, like a seesaw.”

Anyone who remembers the pull tabs of the 1970s that were the bane of bare feet everywhere is a fan of this innovation in can technology. Who knew the stay-put tab is a great example of physics in action?

Check out TechInsider’s full article, “The Tabs on Soda Cans are Genius, and Physics Shows Why” here.

To find out more about what America’s beverage companies are doing, visit AmeriBev.org.