The word domino has several meanings, but the most common refers to a game played with a set of small rectangular blocks. Each block is marked on one side with an arrangement of dots that resembles those on dice, and the other sides are blank or identically patterned. The most common set contains 28 dominoes. These are called double-six dominoes because the numbers on each end range from 0 (or blank) to 6. Most domino sets also contain additional tiles with other combinations of ends, and there are even “extended” sets that include more than 28 pieces.
Each player in turn places a domino on the table, positioning it so that one end of the piece touches either another piece or the ground (see image below). If this touching end shows a number that is not a multiple of 5, the players score points. The game is won by a player who has more than seven dominoes in his or her hand at the time that play passes to the next player.
In addition to the traditional blocking and scoring games, Domino offers many ways to create artistic arrangements of dominoes that can form lines that resemble drawings, grids that form pictures when they fall, and 3D structures like towers and pyramids. These creations take hours or days to complete and often involve intricate planning.
Hevesh, whose largest designs have included 76,017 dominoes, follows what she describes as a version of an engineering-design process when creating her mind-blowing setups. She starts by considering the theme or purpose of an installation, brainstorming images or words she might want to use, and calculating how many dominoes she will need for the design.
Once she has the plan in place, Hevesh begins laying the dominoes out on the floor and positioning them so that one edge of each domino is touching another. Then she draws arrows on the paper that show how she wants the dominoes to fall. She explains that this is an important step, because it lets her see the dominoes as she would if they were in place, and it helps her to avoid problems during the building process.
When Hevesh has finished her setup, she waits for it to fall. As the first domino falls, much of its potential energy converts to kinetic energy, which allows the next domino to topple over and start the chain reaction. Energy continues traveling from domino to domino until the last domino has fallen.
Domino’s CEO, David Brandon, has emphasized the importance of listening to customers since his arrival in the role in 2008. He quickly put into place changes that addressed some of the main complaints that were brought up in surveys, such as a more relaxed dress code and leadership training programs. When he replaced retiring CEO David Doyle in 2010, he reinforced this value, and Domino’s has continued to focus on customer satisfaction.
Although the term domino has become associated with games, it was first used in 1814 to refer to a hooded cloak worn together with a mask at a carnival or masquerade event. A similar sense emerged in the French language, and both the word and the game came into English around 1750.