How Does A Gas Pump Know When To Shut Off? [Video]

There are questions that have bewildered mankind for centuries. Where do the stars come from? How do flowers know when to bloom? And my favorite - how does the gas pump know when to shut off?

You've thought about it too haven't you? You're pumping gas into your car, you've used your credit card so you're going for a fill up and then boom. The pump just quits. I have stared down the barrel of a gas nozzle and I can tell you there doesn't appear to be any little man living in there. There is something in that hose, that pump, that nozzle that lets the whole mechanism know when to say when. How does it work?

If you're a science geek then you know about the Venturi Effect. Okay even if you are a science geek you probably don't know about the Venturi Effect but gas pump makers do. It has to do with fluid speed and pressures and density. This is too much science isn't it?

It's a lot easier to understand and comprehend when you watch the video. Just think how cool you're going to sound at your next tail gate party when you start telling people about the Venturi Effect and how you can demonstrate it with a beer.