The Basics of Dominoes
Dominoes are a game with a long history that has brought joy and companionship to millions. They are a symbol of our innate need for connection with others. They also serve as a tool for teaching young children about the laws of chance, and of course they are an enjoyable way to pass the time with friends or family. Whether in bustling city squares or quiet village homes, domino brings people together and promotes a sense of camaraderie.
The most popular domino games all fall into one of four categories: bidding games, blocking games, scoring games, and round games. The basic rules are similar for all, but some of the variations have specific requirements that distinguish them. These differences are usually based on the number of tiles used and whether they can be played as doubles or singles. Most of the variants are adaptations of other card or board games, and some were developed to circumvent religious proscriptions against playing cards.
Like the playing cards of which they are a variant, dominoes are rectangular in shape and have a line across them to visually divide them into two square ends. The one side of each domino bears an arrangement of dots, known as pips. The other side is blank or identically patterned. A domino’s value is the sum of its pips, and it is ranked higher when the number of pips is greater.
In most of the domino games that require more than one player, a line of tiles called the line of play is built up on the table as players make their plays. The tiles are joined to each other either across or lengthwise, depending on the rules of the game. In general, doubles are played crosswise while singles are played lengthwise.
As each tile is played, it leaves a space for the next to be placed in the same manner. The spaces in the line of play are usually marked by dots, but they can be labeled with numbers or letters. In most of the games, the first to place his or her tile in the line of play is referred to as the “leader”.
When the leader lays a tile, it begins the chain reaction that results in all other tiles falling down, and play passes to the next player. In some games, the leader may “knock” or rap the table to force the other players to play their tiles. A player may also recall a played tile before it becomes part of the line of play, although this is not required.
The modeling and safety assessment of domino effects is challenging because of their low probability and high consequence, and the complexity and uncertainty associated with such events. A number of methods for identifying domino effect probabilities are available, but each has its limitations. For example, event tree analysis techniques are often biased because they do not consider all possible sequences of domino events.