Mirrors And The Fourth Dimension

less than 1m read

·Nov 10, 2024

Mirrors do not show us a fourth dimension, but they do show us what a fourth dimension could do to us. First, notice that some things are the same as their mirror image, but some things are not. These two shapes are similar, but they cannot be rotated to look identical, to be superimposable on each other. This is called being chiral.

A chiral shape and its mirror image are called anatomorphs. These two shapes are anatomorphs in two dimensions. No amount of two-dimensional rotations will ever make them superimposable. To do that, I'll need to smash one of them inside out, turn it into its own mirror image, or rotate it in a third, higher dimension.

If I place a sticker here and face that side away from me, notice that the mirror inverts the object, just like a rotation through a higher dimension. The side of the real object that's furthest from me becomes the side of the virtual object that's closest to me. So, what would I look like if I was rotated around a plane in a fourth spatial dimension and then brought back? I would look like that.

Learn How to Use Pixar in a Box with Your Students

Fixed Points

View All

Everything You Need To Know About Stoicism.

We’re all pretty used to rain. We’re either prepared for it with an umbrella or raincoat, or just get wet. Rarely does it genuinely upset us. But what about when it rains for days and the streets flood so you can’t go outside? Or when you realize you can’…

Engineer Builds Drone From Scratch, Destroys It on First Day | Expedition Raw

This was my first major expedition, so this is the dream, right? It’s a bit hairy to actually get on. My main job is to get aerial shots for conservation research. This expedition happened in 2012, and even though it doesn’t seem like that long ago, drone…

The Current State of the Stock Market (2021)

So that right there is Charlie Monkey. He’s essentially Warren Buffett’s right hand man. He is the vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway. What we’re looking at right here is him giving a talk at the Daily Journal shareholders meeting, which happened a coupl…

How to Focus Intensely

In a world that is growing in distraction, the ability to focus is becoming increasingly rare. It’s a skill that, simultaneously, is becoming increasingly valuable. Its demand is rising while its supply is decreasing, to put it in economic terms. In this …

Coral Reefs 101 | National Geographic

(Gentle music) - [Narrator] Coral reefs, their bright, vivid colors can be seen in tropical ocean waters around the globe. Beyond their brilliant appearance lies a hidden significance. Coral are animals. Though they may look like colorful plants, coral a…

15 Smart Money Moves for For Every Stage Of Life

When you’re young, you have time, you have health, but you have no money. When you’re middle-aged, you have money and you have health, but you have no time. When you’re old, you have money, you have time, but you have no health. By the time people realize…

Mirrors And The Fourth Dimension

More Articles