For those who possess persistent curiosity:
Here are some other ways to identify Mirropane from an ordinary, second-surface mirror.
This from William Beaty, electrical engineer, Seattle: "... simply turn the lights off in [the] room, then place a bright flashlight against the mirror surface. If there is a hidden chamber behind the mirror, the flashlight will illuminate it, and since you're in a darkened room, you'll see the hidden chamber."
A deputy from the Washington County Police Department in Oregon concurs, and suggests that even a pen-light will work for this test, though not nearly as well. He further suggests that, if you are in a room (such as a changing room) where you cannot turn off the lights on your side, if you hold your eyes near to the glass surface and cup your hands around them on either side to eliminate most of the light from your visual field, you ought to be able to see through the treated glass, as Mirropane will permit about a 12 percent passage of light (from the lit side to the hidden chamber, if there is one).
Douglas Brown, a part-time field researcher and writer who also works for Powell's Books, Inc. in Portland, Oregon, has some clever advice to share. He makes the point that there is a clear auditory difference between Mirropane and regular mirrors, because of how they are installed. Rap on the surface with your knuckle or fingernail, he says, and in most situations you'll be able to hear the difference in the sound produced. Ordinary mirrors have backing material which will dull the sound, while windows have open air behind them and will reverberate more.
Along similar lines, when the text asks "how many of you know for sure that the seemingly ordinary mirror hanging on the wall is a real mirror, or actually a two-way mirror?" those employees of Morehouse Glass make the point that any mirror hung in front of a wall will be a mirror plain and simple, because Mirropane will be a pane of glass installed into the wall like any other window, and will have window framing evident, not mirror glass molding around it.
For those who will remain nervous nellies from here until breakfast:
This article is not meant to be encyclopedic. We'll leave that to the special effects department. Common sense would seem to dictate, however, that one be clear about where and why one is undressing in any potentially semi-private place, rather than concerning oneself with who may be watching. Birthday suits are, after all, just birthday suits.
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Last updated 03/14/10
