There are countless sites carrying different chemical structures displayable in glorious and rotating 3D and a lot of extra information can be held within a virtual molecule allowing clickable atoms and bonds to spawn spectra and other wonders. But, the kind of molecular models kits that fascinated me as a students chemist still have a valuable place in chemical education and research, argues science writer David Bradley It is no coincidence that even Nobel chemists go "back to basics" to help they and their students get a real feel for chemistry.