INTRODUCTION

•	The shapes of molecules tend to be controlled by the number of electrons in the valence shell of the central atom. The valence-shell electron-pair repulsion (VSEPR) model provides a simple method for predicting the shapes of such species.

•	The Cambridge Structural Database contains a wealth of diverse molecular geometries, and provides the ability to visualise and manipulate molecules in three-dimensions. This is vitally important in order to study and understand the shapes adopted by particular molecules.