eli5: can someone explain the difference between achiral and chiral molecules?

Question

fuck explaining like im 5 explain like im the dumbest 2 year old youve ever met. every explanation ive read (even on this sub) doesnt make sense. neither does the hand example

In: 0

Answer 1

Chiral molecules are ones that are mirror images of each other, but no matter how you rotate them they don’t have the same shape. Imagine the two halves of someone’s face. They’re made up of the same features, but no change in orientation can make the left side of your face into the right side of your face. Achiral molecules are shapes that can be oriented into the original shape after being mirrored, like a cube, pyramid, or sphere (not that achiral molecules are only simple shapes.