text: Many commercial elastomers contain polysulfides as crosslinks. These crosslinks interconnect neighboring polymer chains, thereby conferring rigidity. The degree of rigidity is related to the number of crosslinks. Elastomers, therefore, have a characteristic ability to return to their original shape after being stretched or compressed. Because of this memory for their original cured shape, elastomers are commonly referred to as rubbers. The process of crosslinking the polymer chains in these polymers with sulfur is called vulcanization. The sulfur chains attach themselves to the allylic carbon atoms, which are adjacent to C=C linkages. Vulcanization is a step in the processing of several classes of rubbers, including polychloroprene (Neoprene), styrene-butadiene, and polyisoprene, which is chemically similar to natural rubber. Charles Goodyear's discovery of vulcanization, involving the heating of polyisoprene with sulfur, was revolutionary because it converted a sticky and almost useless material into an elastomer that could be fabricated into useful products.