  We investigate the degree of local structural similarity between the
parent-liquid and children-crystal states for a model soft-matter system of
particles interacting through the harmonic-repulsive pair potential. At
different pressures, this simple system crystallizes into several significantly
different crystal structures. Therefore, the model is well suited for
addressing the question under consideration. In our studies, we carefully
analyze the developments of the pair and triple correlation functions for the
parent-liquid as the pressure increases. In particular, these considerations
allow us to address the similarities in the orientational orderings of the
corresponding liquid and solid phases. It is demonstrated that the similarities
in the orientational ordering between the two states extend beyond the first
and second neighbors. Currently, it is widely accepted that orientational
ordering is important for understanding the behaviors of liquids, supercooled
liquids, and the development of detailed theories of the crystalization
process. Our results suggest that, up to a certain degree, it might be possible
to predict the structures of the children-solids from studies of the
parent-liquids. Our results raise anew a general question of how much insight
into the properties of the liquid-state can be gained from drawing a parallel
with the solid-state.
