Dominos is a fun game to play with kids or even adults. It can be very creative and the results are usually spectacular. You may have seen domino constructions in movies or on television where a first domino is set up and tipped ever so slightly and then all the other dominos fall in a beautiful cascade of rhythm and order. Interestingly, the Domino Effect has also become a metaphor for certain societal behaviors or events that cascade in similar ways.
A domino is a small rectangular block used as a gaming object, normally 28 in number. Variously nicknamed bones, cards, men, pieces or tiles, dominoes have one side marked with an arrangement of dots resembling those on dice and a blank or identically patterned other side. Each end of a domino has a value, normally indicated by the number of dots shown: a domino with the ends showing the numbers one and two is worth more points than one with only the number three.
While some people may play domino just for the thrill of seeing a long row of dominoes all toppled with just the slightest nudge, other people enjoy competing to build the most complex domino reaction or chain before an audience of fans. The best builders can create domino chains of hundreds or thousands of tiles that all fall with a single domino, demonstrating incredible skill and awe-inspiring displays of imagination.
Many games can be played using dominoes including scoring and blocking games. In scoring games, players must choose a domino from their boneyard that has the same number as a previous domino that was played and positioned on the edge of a row (i.e., the exposed ends of the previous domino must match: one’s touch two’s, two’s touch three’s and so on). The player then places the chosen domino on the edge of the row in front of them so that its value is added to the total score of their opponent.
In the business world, Domino’s Pizza has a strong leadership structure with a focus on listening to customers. This is demonstrated in the TV show Undercover Boss where CEO Don Meij sends himself to work at several Domino’s locations, observing how employees interact with their customers and making changes based on his observations.
When it comes to writing, a domino effect occurs when a scene is well-paced and moves readers to the next step in a story quickly. Creating scenes that feel overly long can be boring and a writer must always be conscious of how much detail or background information is necessary to tell the story. On the other hand, if a scene is too short it might not be clear how the hero reached the final goal of a scene. Writers must strike a balance between these two extremes to ensure that their scenes are both interesting and believable. The best way to learn this is to experiment with the pace and rhythm of a series of scenes by laying them all out in front of you and stepping back from them.