One of the most common games in childhood is domino. Children stack a series of dominoes on end in long lines. When the first domino is tipped, it triggers all of the others to fall in a beautiful cascade of rhythmic motion. This use of dominoes inspired the phrase, domino effect, which refers to any action that leads to a series of events with larger and sometimes catastrophic consequences. In business, a domino effect can be the result of one simple setback that quickly destabilizes an entire industry or organization.
In the West, most domino games are played with a standard set of 28 tiles, but many other sets exist and different games can be played with them. Most domino sets feature dots on the ends of each tile that can be matched to corresponding numbers on other tiles in the set. Some domino sets have additional digits on the ends that can be used for scoring purposes. Increasingly larger domino sets are being produced; examples include double-nine and double-twelve sets.
As the size of a domino set increases, it becomes harder to identify the pips by their color, and many large domino sets use more easily readable Arabic numerals instead of pips. In addition to blocking and scoring games, there are also domino games that are more like solitaire or trick-taking card games and were once popular in some areas because they allowed play around religious proscriptions against playing cards.
Domino Art
Some artists create artistic works using dominoes. They may make curved lines, grids that form pictures when the dominoes are stacked on top of each other, a 3D tower or pyramid or even a city skyline. To design a work of domino art, the artist considers the theme or purpose of the installation and brainstorms images or words that could be used in the design.
The design can then be drafted on paper with arrows showing how the dominoes should be positioned in order to achieve the desired effect. Alternatively, the artist may choose to build the work in miniature and then place the dominoes on a flat surface with arrows drawn on them for guidance.
When a piece of domino art is complete, the artist may then photograph it for archival purposes. The photograph can be printed on a variety of materials, including canvas and paper and is sold in a number of places online and in brick-and-mortar galleries.
Writing Tip for Today
In writing, a domino effect happens when a single scene doesn’t have enough logical impact on the scenes ahead of it. This can be a problem for writers who write by the seat of their pants without creating outlines or using software like Scrivener to help them plot.
Domino’s former CEO David Brandon understood this concept and implemented changes when he took over the company after the death of a Domino’s employee. He made sure to listen closely to workers’ complaints and addressed them directly rather than taking a hands-off approach as previous leaders had. This embodied the company’s core values of “Champion Our Customers” and “Always Put Customer Needs First.”