Domino is a game played with a set of small rectangular wooden blocks, each bearing an arrangement of dots or pips similar to those on dice. They are usually arranged edge to edge on a flat surface, and each player in turn places one domino so that its end touches another, which then forms part of a chain that gradually increases in length. When a domino is positioned so that both ends show the same number, this is said to be “stitched up.”
When a domino is placed upright, gravity exerts a force on it, and this gives it potential energy (the energy it has stored from its position). When the first domino topples over, much of this potential energy is converted into kinetic energy (energy of motion). This changes the shape of the rest of the chain, pushing each subsequent tile toward its tip. The process continues as each domino passes its tip to the next domino, and eventually the entire chain develops a snake-like shape as the tiles overlap and interlock.
A large part of the fun in domino is watching each tile fall in its proper place, and the players have a lot of room for creativity in designing these chains. The rules of domino vary, but generally each player may only play a tile which has a certain number showing on both its ends (unless the doubles are touching). The result is that the chain is constantly developing new configurations as the dominos are stacked one by one.
Some of the most popular games played with dominoes are positioning and scoring ones, where each player places a domino edge to edge against another so that their adjacent sides match in either number or total (doubles count as one or two depending on the game) or form some specified total. The player who reaches the target score in a given number of rounds wins the game.
Often these positioning games are played with different sets of dominoes, and players compete to build the longest possible line. The most common extended domino sets are the double-twelve, double-nine and double-15. The larger the extended set, the more dominoes it contains, allowing for more players and a wider variety of games.
Many other types of domino games exist, including block and skill-based ones. A number of them are adaptations of card games, which were once popular in some areas to circumvent religious prohibitions on the use of cards.
Good dominoes are tasks that contribute to a bigger goal, and the process of completing them requires a significant chunk of time and effort. For example, if you need to write a financial plan for your business, this could be a domino that would help you reach your goals in the long run. If you’re focused, you can break this task down into a series of smaller dominoes, and then work on each one in turn. This approach will make the whole process less daunting and easier to manage.