Question
Why does a mirror appear to reverse left right but not up and down? In science term of student
Answers
GPT 3.5
When light reflects off a mirror, it does not actually reverse left and right. What happens is that the mirror reflects the image in the same orientation as the original, but since we are used to seeing ourselves right side up, it appears reversed when we look at the mirror image. This concept is known as lateral inversion.
The reason we perceive left and right as reversed in a mirror, but not up and down, is because our brains are wired to interpret the visual information we receive in a certain way. We typically see ourselves and others from a frontal perspective, so when we see that perspective reversed in a mirror, it can be disorienting.
On the other hand, our brains are not as sensitive to changes in the up and down orientation of an image, so we do not perceive any reversal in that axis. Essentially, our brains are more attuned to changes in left and right orientation than they are to changes in up and down orientation, which is why the lateral inversion effect is more noticeable.
The reason we perceive left and right as reversed in a mirror, but not up and down, is because our brains are wired to interpret the visual information we receive in a certain way. We typically see ourselves and others from a frontal perspective, so when we see that perspective reversed in a mirror, it can be disorienting.
On the other hand, our brains are not as sensitive to changes in the up and down orientation of an image, so we do not perceive any reversal in that axis. Essentially, our brains are more attuned to changes in left and right orientation than they are to changes in up and down orientation, which is why the lateral inversion effect is more noticeable.