Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site bbncca.ARPA Path: utzoo!linus!bbncca!rrizzo From: rrizzo@bbncca.ARPA (Ron Rizzo) Newsgroups: net.philosophy Subject: Re: Why do mirrors reverse left & right, not up & down? Message-ID: <537@bbncca.ARPA> Date: Wed, 1-Feb-84 11:50:10 EST Article-I.D.: bbncca.537 Posted: Wed Feb 1 11:50:10 1984 Date-Received: Thu, 2-Feb-84 01:29:12 EST References: <664@dciem.UUCP> Organization: Bolt, Beranek and Newman, Cambridge, Ma. Lines: 19 Martin Taylor's reply begs the question. Let's say the mirror reversal is front-to-back. The question once again is why does the resultant front-to-back reversed image in the mirror exchange left and right and not top and bottom? (It's not necessary for the viewer to perceiver a "person" in the image: the left/right exchange is still perceptible even when viewing the mirror image as an abstract shape. One could also put a guitar in front of the mirror and observe the same phenome- non.) The question isn't trivial nor are its "answer(s)" easy or evident. It was the exclusive subject of a "philosophically-oriented" course given at MIT a few years ago. As to whether the question is "philosophical", if the attempt to answer it causes us to think about assumptions or basic ideas we rely on, then the question certainly has philosophical import. But thanks for the reply; I hope others will be forthcoming (this mailing list doesn't show much activity recently).