# 1.3 Size & Shape: The Packing Game

> Size & Shape: The Packing Game (Module 1: The Building Blocks). Key concept: Steric complementarity. Compare side chains by volume and shape, not just by polarity.

Size & Shape: The Packing Game (Module 1: The Building Blocks). Key concept: Steric complementarity. Compare side chains by volume and shape, not just by polarity.

- Compare side chains by volume and shape, not just by polarity
- Explain why tight packing in the core is as important as burial itself
- Recognise cavities as a destabilising defect rather than empty space
- Match residues to pockets by size, and predict what a mismatch costs

## Links

- [Module 1: The Building Blocks](https://proteindesign.academy/module/1)
- [Introduction](https://proteindesign.academy/module/1/intro)
- [1.1 The Hydrophobic Effect](https://proteindesign.academy/module/1/1)
- [1.2 Electrostatics & Salt Bridges](https://proteindesign.academy/module/1/2)
- [1.4 The Special Characters](https://proteindesign.academy/module/1/4)
- [1.5 Aromatic Interactions](https://proteindesign.academy/module/1/5)
- [The Peptide Engineer](https://proteindesign.academy/module/1/capstone)