Why do mirrors reverse left and right but not up and down?

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Mirrors do not actually reverse left and right or up and down; they reverse front and back. When facing a mirror, your head remains up, and your right hand stays on the right side. The perception of reversal is due to the way we interpret the reflection. The angle of reflection can also create an upside-down image, depending on the positioning. The discussion touches on the nature of reflection and the interpretation of mirrored images.
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why do mirrors reverse left and right but not up and down?

thank you very much.
Ryan.
 
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Mirrors do not reverse up-down nor left-right. Your (up) head is always up and your right hand is always at right.

What a mirror reverse is front-back. If you are heading North, your image is heading south.
 
A mirror can reflect 'upside down'---it just depends on the angle of reflection.
 
From the Usenet Physics FAQ:

http://www.physics.adelaide.edu.au/~dkoks/Faq/General/mirrors.html
 
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I'm wondering who the hell Trimotio and Fineas are. Like Alice and Bob, or are they random names, or what?
 
I thought they were the 1/2 wave virtual non-local representative ghost MWI counter-equivalents of Bob and Alice.
 
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