Domino is a game of skill and strategy. It is also a form of art that can be used to create intricate, beautiful displays. Some of these displays are used to illustrate mathematics concepts, such as addition equations and fractions. Others can be used to show patterns or relationships in data. Domino can be used in classrooms to support Common Core standards in math and science, as well as social-emotional learning and language arts.
The domino effect occurs when one element in a chain influences the next, causing it to react differently or even change direction completely. This effect is the basis for many of the plots in movies and novels. Dominoes, in particular, can be a fun way to demonstrate how this effect works.
Lily Hevesh started playing with dominoes when she was 9 years old, and she quickly began building amazing creations with them. Her domino collection grew, and eventually she started posting videos of her projects online. Today, Hevesh is a professional domino artist who creates mind-blowing setups for events and even movies—and has a YouTube channel with more than 2 million subscribers.
Hevesh says that when she’s working on a new project, she starts by considering what kind of effect she wants. She brainstorms images or words that might help convey her message, and then she thinks about how the elements will be placed to create that effect. Once she’s satisfied with her design, she begins putting it together. She always tests each section of an installation before putting it all together, and she usually films these test runs in slow motion to make precise corrections.
When you play domino, you typically draw tiles from a domino set and place them on the table in front of you. The first player (determined by drawing lots, by who has the heaviest hand, or by some other method) places the first tile, which is normally a double-six. Normally, additional dominoes may only be placed on the ends of a double, and each end of a domino can only be connected to a single other end.
In most domino games, the values of each side of a tile are indicated by an arrangement of spots, or “pips,” like those on a die, except that some squares are blank. The value of a domino may range from six to none, depending on the variant.
When a domino is placed on the table, its potential energy converts to kinetic energy, which causes it to push away from other dominoes. This energy travels to the next domino, which carries the same potential energy, and so on. This process continues until all the dominoes have fallen, creating the desired effect. Dominoes are also often used to create patterns and shapes, such as spirals and fractals. These can be fun to create in school with simple drawings or in a computer-based program. Dominoes can also be stacked to form three-dimensional structures, such as towers and pyramids.