In chemistry, the spontaneous conversion of a molecule into its mirror-image form without external catalysts or forces.
Combines 'auto-' (self), 'racemic' (relating to a mixture of molecular mirror images), and '-ization' (process of becoming). Emerged in 20th-century organic chemistry as scientists studied molecular transformations.
Molecules can spontaneously flip themselves into their mirror-image versions—it's like your hand suddenly becoming the opposite hand without anyone touching it, which is why chemists found this so fascinating.
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