A domino is a small, flat, rectangular block marked with two groups of dots on one end and used for playing several games. The most common domino is white and has a line down its center, but they can also be colored, made of wood or another material, or even electronic. Dominoes can be stacked in rows, but they are more often set on edge and played by placing one piece over another. The physics behind dominoes is simple: As each domino is stood upright against the force of gravity, it stores potential energy in its position. When a domino falls, most of its potential energy converts to kinetic energy, the energy of motion. Some of this energy is transmitted to the next domino, providing the push needed to knock it over. Then the energy continues traveling from domino to domino until all of them have fallen over, creating a chain reaction.
Domino’s has a long list of core values, but the value that most resonates with me is “Champion Our Customers.” This means putting the customer’s needs first and making sure the company does what it takes to meet those needs. It’s not an easy task, but it is a key factor in Domino’s success.
When Hevesh creates a new domino setup, she follows a version of the engineering design process. She starts by considering a theme or purpose for the design, then brainstorms images or words that would be appropriate to use in the layout. Once she has an idea in mind, she begins constructing the dominoes in front of her. She prefers to play on a hard surface so she can stand the tiles up on their edges.
While the rules of the game vary from one set to the next, most dominoes are played by scoring points as you lay down each tile. This is done by matching the exposed ends of adjacent pieces: one’s touching other’s, two’s touching three’s, and so on. Some games allow doubles to be counted as either one or two (a 6-6 counts as 6 or 12, depending on the rules), and some allow blank sides to be ascribed any value. The player who scores the most points after a set number of rounds wins.
The most common domino sets are double-twelve and double-nine, which contain 91 and 55 dominoes, respectively. These can be supplemented with “extended” sets, which increase the number of unique domino ends by introducing additional numbers of dots on each end. These additional numbers can be added to existing sets, such as the double-six, double-seven, and double-eight, to produce a larger total combination of ends. A maximum of 190 unique dominoes can be produced this way, but many domino players do not need more than the double-twelve and double-nine sets to enjoy themselves. This allows for a fast pace of play that is ideal for parties or group activities.