ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

5-cell

Okay kiddo, let me tell you about a 5-cell. Imagine a little 3D shape with 5 corners, sort of like a tiny pyramid with an extra side. It's also called a pentachoron, if that helps you remember. Now, think about how you can connect those corners with lines. You'll see that you can make 10 lines, which will divide the 5-cell into 5 triangular faces.

Now, here comes the tricky part, so listen carefully. A 5-cell doesn't fit into our normal, 3D world that we can touch and feel, because it actually has four dimensions! That's one more than we can easily understand and experience in our everyday lives. But just because we can't see or touch it, doesn't mean we can't imagine it.

Scientists and mathematicians like to study objects with more than 3 dimensions because it can help us understand things in new ways. For example, a 5-cell is one of the simplest objects in 4 dimensions, and studying it can help us understand how higher dimensions work. So even though it might be hard to wrap your head around, a little shape like the 5-cell is actually pretty important!