Stereoscopy - how it works.

I don't propose to write lots about this. Instead I offer links to other sites who have spent time covering the subject

Our system uses the same principles: The two images from two projectors are superimposed in register on the screen, one for the left eye, and one for the right. One projector has a polarising filter which only allows light through in '/' direction, the other in the opposite '\' direction. Each participant in the lecture is provided with a pair of polarising spectacles - one lense allows '/' light in, the other allows '\' light in - like a seive! The result is the right and left eye each get their designated content - a minutely different view of the same scene. The only difference is the views were taken 40 to 60mm apart - the approximate spacing between our eyes. The result is we interpret this information as a 3-dimensional image. By placing a second Virtual Camera in 3D modelling software then, you can generate stereo images from models... of , for instance, anatomy.

For more detail, see:

Wikipedia: Stereoscopy
 
Wikimedia
Stereographs
Stereoscopy & Stereoscopic Photography
More links to other stereoscopic sites.
(Probably) The World´s largest Website fully devoted to stereo photography
 
Stereoscopy and Illusions
 
Stereo Pixel MOVER
A wierd one! (Didn't actually read it, but at a cursory glance it´s how to convert a normal image into a pseudo-stereo one...maybe?