How come when you look in a mirror things are only back the front and not upside down?

Question

How come when you look in a mirror things are only back the front and not upside down?

Answer 1

ʇɐɥʇ op ʇuop ʇ! ʎuunɟ sʇ!

Answer 2

A mirror will only reflect the image, not invert it.   A lens, much like in an old slide projector will invert, or turn the image upside down.

Answer 3

Because your eyes are side by side and not one above the other

Answer 4

The image you see in a mirror is actually reversed front-to-back through the plane of the mirror. Or in other words, the up-down and left-right directions stay the same, but the front-back direction is reversed.

We interpret it as a horizontal rotation because that kind of movement of physical objects is more familiar to us.

If you don't believe me that there is no left-to-right reversal, try this: write your name on a piece of transparent film or tracing paper and hold it in front of you while looking in the mirror. You will be able to read it from the sheet and in the mirror at the same time.

Answer 5

Technically, things are upside down.

The way the light rays bend when you look in a mirror, make the virtual image (the reflection) appear upright and facing you, when it is actually upside down.

Your brain just processes it the right way round. I think I got that right. The last time I did physics was when I was 16.

xCherryx

Answer 6

because you have the mirror in a vertical plane.  put the mirror on the floor and stand on it and up becomes down and down becomes up.

Answer 7

A mirror does not invert left and right and it does not invert top and bottom.  What it does do, however, is invert depth, ie distance from the mirror.