Domino is a board game for two or more players that originated in Italy and then spread rapidly to Austria, southern Germany, and France. It is played by placing dominoes, or tiles, edge to edge against another in such a way that the adjacent faces are either identical (e.g., 5 to 5) or form some specified total.
There are many types of domino games, but most involve laying the tiles end to end and scoring points by matching the exposed ends. If the exposed ends total any multiple of five, a player is awarded that number of points.
One of the most popular forms of domino gaming is called Block. In this game, each player takes a certain number of dominoes at the beginning of the game, and then passes their turn as they see fit. After a particular amount of time, if the player cannot play any more, they must choose a sleeping domino from their own set to add to their chain.
Another common form of domino game is the Draw Game, in which players take less dominoes at the beginning of the games and then pass their turn as they see fit. Unlike the Block game, the Sleeping Dominoes can be played at any time during the game as long as they have matching values to the dominoes that the player has already laid.
The main advantage of the Draw game is that it is easier to remember what the values are, and there is less chance that the same dominoes will be played again. This is especially true in games with a small number of players.
In addition to being a great game, dominoes have a fascinating history as well. In 1924, American chemist and physicist Edward Alsop wrote a paper that described the principle of the falling domino effect, which states that any event which triggers another similar event will eventually cause a cascade of events.
This principle is a useful tool for understanding a variety of situations, including political ones. President Eisenhower was asked about aid for the South Vietnamese government during a press conference in 1954 and he used the idea of the falling domino effect to explain why America should offer help.
It’s a simple concept, but it’s powerful. As the first domino falls, it generates some of its potential energy into kinetic energy, which then travels to the next domino and provides the push to knock it down.
That energy is transferred to the second domino, and so on until a cascade of dominoes is formed. That cascade is then repeated until a player has accumulated all the dominoes and wins the game.
Dominos are often used as a metaphor for important aspects of life and business. Among other things, they represent the importance of sharing ideas with the world.
When we work with clients who need to improve their writing, one of the best lessons I can teach them is that they should treat every single plot beat like a domino. That means making an effort to prioritize the most important ideas and letting the rest fall by the wayside.