Domino is a game of strategy, skill and chance. It can be played by two or more players, and it’s a great way to spend a family night together.
The origins of dominoes are unknown, but they were probably introduced in Europe by prisoners-of-war during the French Revolution. In the 1700s, they spread rapidly across the European continent, particularly to France. They are also known in China, where they have been played for over a millennium.
They were first described in 1602 by the Chinese scholar Zhang Pu, who called them pupai (
There are many different kinds of dominoes, but they all follow the same rules: Each player draws seven tiles from a stock or boneyard and then plays them one at a time. If a player has a domino with a value that matches the current value of another tile, that person wins. If not, the other player must choose a different domino from the boneyard and then play it.
Most sets consist of 28 tiles, with each end being numbered so that the number on the top left corner is the same as the number on the bottom right. Extended sets are available with more pips on each end; a common set is double-nine, which is 55 tiles long.
These sets are often used in games such as Five-Up and Tien Gow, which require larger sets of pieces than those required for a basic domino game. The extended sets allow for greater variation in the game’s rules and strategies, which can add a degree of challenge and excitement to the game.
The earliest dominoes were made of wood, but today most sets are plastic or other rigid materials. The modern dominoes have a wide variety of shapes, including circles, squares and hexagons.
They can be used to play many different types of games, from simple board games to complex card games. In some instances, the dominoes are even used to represent letters or numbers.
Some children prefer to use the dominoes as toys, stacking them on end in lines and making fun designs. In other cases, they are used for more advanced puzzles and physics experiments.
In the 1980s, University of British Columbia physicist Lorne Whitehead found that he could actually knock down a domino about one-and-a-half times its own size with a single strike. This was the origin of the phrase “the domino effect” that describes a series of events that starts with a small action that ultimately leads to much greater–and sometimes catastrophic–consequences.
This concept was widely applied by President Eisenhower in the 1940s and ’50s, when the United States had to deal with the rise of communism in Asia. It is now commonly used to describe any situation in which a small event may start a series of more serious consequences.
The Domino Effect is a powerful concept that can be used to achieve goals and change habits. It involves establishing a series of small habits that each contribute to a bigger goal and then letting those behaviors cascade to other aspects of your life. By incorporating the three rules above, you can easily build a system that helps you create a lasting and meaningful change in your life.