When a domino falls, it generates a chain reaction of events. This same effect applies to our daily lives as well. A single setback can trigger a series of events that can alter our entire course. This is what physicist Lorne Whitehead calls the Domino Effect.
In his 1983 paper “Domino Effect: A Physical Demonstration,” Whitehead used a series of dominoes to show how the effects of one domino can be seen in a chain reaction. He began with a small square domino, about half the size of a Tic Tac, and continued adding larger and larger ones until he had built a chain that reached more than three feet tall. The small domino was enough to knock over a bowl of water, but the large domino was unable to topple it.
While many people think of dominoes as simple toys, the truth is that they are more powerful than we realize. In fact, they are capable of generating more force than a car crash or lightning strike. In order to demonstrate this, Whitehead placed the small domino on a plate and connected it to a battery-powered electric fan. When the domino hit the fan, it generated more than 200 times the amount of energy needed to break the first domino.
Hevesh, who works on domino projects for movies, TV shows, and even music events (including an album launch for pop singer Katy Perry), has created a mind-blowing array of domino setups. Some of her largest installations can take several nail-biting minutes to fall. Hevesh says she creates these mind-boggling domino sets using a kind of engineering-design process. She starts by considering the theme or purpose of the project and brainstorming images or words that might help her design the setup. She then considers how to build it and what pieces she will need.
Throughout history, dominoes have been made of a variety of materials. The most common is bone, but they have also been made of silver lip ocean pearl oyster shell (mother-of-pearl), ivory, a dark hardwood such as ebony, and other solid materials. The most elaborate dominoes, however, were made of engraved ivory and were decorated with pips that were inlaid or painted on.
Dominoes are typically twice as long as they are wide. They feature a line in the middle that divides each side visually into two squares, called ends. Each end has an arrangement of dots, similar to those on a die, but some ends are blank or have no marks at all. The value of a domino is determined by the number of these spots, which are sometimes referred to as pips.
When a player picks up a domino, the two matching ends must touch to form a doublet. If they do not match, the player must select another domino from the boneyard until they find one that does. When the matching ends are laid down, they create a row of dominoes that are exposed for scoring. The goal is to win the game by getting all of your tiles out before your opponent does.
