............ this tape is not like a mirro, but a matte surface that
disperses the light so it looks like a warm glow.....
Actually, reading part of the references given, the type of reflecting tape
mentioned, and now required on trailers, is refered to as 'retro reflective'
tape. A retroreflector is designed such that any light hitting it from any
angle is reflected directly back to the source, making the reflection as
bright as possible.  Because of the size of the reflecting beads on tape
like this (very, very small) the effect is to provide one of diffused light,
but the intent is to provide as bright a relected light as possible.
I'd never thought about retrorefletors before, but this seems to be one of
many possible answers to the 'to dim, to low' problem with the rear lights
on our Vanagons.