ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Buckminster Fullerene

Hey kiddo! Today we're going to talk about something called buckminster fullerene! It's a really cool molecule that looks like a little soccer ball with hexagons and pentagons all over it.

Okay, so let's start with what a molecule is. You know how everything is made up of tiny things called atoms? Well, when a bunch of atoms join together, they make a molecule.

Buckminster fullerene is a special type of molecule that's made up of sixty carbon atoms. The way these carbon atoms are arranged makes the molecule look like a little ball with a bunch of sides.

Now, you might be wondering why we care about this little molecule. Well, it turns out that buckminster fullerene has some really interesting properties.

For example, it's really good at conducting electricity, which means it can be used in things like solar cells and computer chips. It's also really strong and hard, so it can be used to make things like armor and even tennis rackets!

Scientists are still discovering new ways that buckminster fullerene can be used, so who knows what other cool things we'll find out about it in the future!