Domino is a game played with small rectangular blocks of wood or other materials, bearing one or more arranged dots (or pips) on each end. The pips on dominoes are usually numbered from left to right, although some have one end blank and the other marked with a different number. Two matching sets of dominoes form a complete set. Dominoes have been in use for centuries and are an excellent teaching tool for developing math skills and pattern recognition. They are also the basis for many different games of chance and skill.
When a domino is standing upright, it has potential energy, which is energy stored based on its position. When the first domino falls, some of that energy is converted to kinetic energy, which gives it the push needed to knock over other dominoes. This continues, passing energy from one domino to the next, until the last domino falls.
Often, the final domino is placed to complete a shape, such as a line or an L. In some cases, the final domino must be placed so that its pips match the pips of another domino that has been played, or the player will lose the game. A domino can also be placed so that its pips are in a row, or in a zigzag pattern.
A domino effect is any chain reaction, such as the falling of a domino in a game of dominoes or the sequence of events in a novel that culminate in a dramatic climax. The term is also used to describe the effects of decisions and actions on other people or situations, particularly in business, politics, law, and sports.
