Note: I am not an expert in RNA structure, and am extremely grateful to Connor Stephens, Rishabh Anand, Ramya Rangan, and Chaitanya K. Joshi—all of whom are actual, bonafide experts—for their incredibly detailed comments on earlier drafts of this essay. All mistakes are, of course mine, and this essay should not be trusted to function as anything more than entertainment. Do your own research!IntroductionWhy is RNA structure so hard to model?Why even predict RNA structure in the first place?How m...