Dominoes are small, flat blocks used as gaming objects. Also known as bones, cards, men, or pieces, they are normally twice as long as they are wide and have either a number of spots (called pips) on one end or a blank. Usually the pips form a suit, with each side having different values. The value of each end may be added to, or subtracted from, the total value of a domino to determine its rank. A domino is also said to have a “weight” or rank, and the higher its weight, the more valuable it is.
Using a basic double-six set, a player can make up to eight different games. First, the dominoes are arranged face down on the table and mixed to create the stock (also called the boneyard). Each player then draws seven dominoes from this pool and makes the first play of the game.
While it seems as though a single domino would be unable to affect any other domino, that is not the case. Each domino has a certain amount of potential energy that is stored inside it until it experiences some outside force, such as a nudge from another domino. This nudge releases the potential energy, and some of that energy is transferred to the next domino in line. As more energy is transmitted from one domino to the next, it eventually causes the entire chain to fall over.
When a novelist plots out the sequence of events for her book, she is essentially creating a domino effect. While there are many aspects to the process, the most important is how her characters react and interact with each other. The characters must act in a way that will cause the other characters to react and ultimately change the course of the story.
The domino effect can also occur in business, such as when a company makes a change that causes others to follow suit. For example, when a large pharmaceutical company changes the price of an over-the-counter medication, this can have a significant impact on its competitors. In fact, this is often the motivation for drug companies to change the price of their medications.
In the Domino’s Pizza company, the domino effect is evident in their use of a purpose-built delivery vehicle as well as their focus on delivering pizza quickly to customers. This business model allows the company to focus on its core competencies and also be successful in markets where there is little local competition or limited transportation infrastructure.
The most popular domino games involve a simple pattern of laying down one domino after another, so that the numbers (or blanks) on adjacent dominoes match each other. The most common type of domino set contains 28 tiles, including seven doubles (with the same number on both ends ranging from double blank to double six) and 21 singles (having a combination of a number and a blank). The rules for each of these games can vary widely, but the basics of the most popular include: