Domino is a tile game of chance, skill and strategy that can be played by two or more people. The game is generally played by laying dominoes end-to-end (one’s touching one’s, two’s touching two’s, etc.). Each exposed side of the tiles counts as one point, except a double blank, which counts as zero. The first player to score a specified number of points wins the game.
There are many variations of domino rules and games, some of which use only a single set of dominoes. In general, the game is played by placing a domino in such a way that adjacent pieces have identical values, such as a 5 to 5 or 6 to 6. Some games allow players to mark their score with markers on the table.
Originally, domino was used only in positional games; a player places a domino edge to edge against another, such as a double-blank or six-to-five. The domino with the higher value is then scored. A player may also win the game by scoring a certain number of points in a set period. The game originated in the late 1700s, purportedly brought to England by French prisoners of war.
Some of the more popular domino games involve matching pairs of tiles with different pips, or numbers. The pips on the dominoes are either white or black, and the matched pair must have all matching pips (for example, a two-to-one). Some games do not require that the matching sides of the dominoes match, but this is an essential rule for some types of games.
In some games, the game continues until one player cannot continue and “dominoes out.” When this happens, all remaining tiles are scored and the winner is declared.
While the word domino does not mean anything in the Chinese language, the Chinese were familiar with a related game. The 32-piece European domino set was developed during the 17th century, and was designed to represent all of the possible results of two thrown dice. This type of domino was known as pupai.
Domino’s has a long history of innovation, from their famous pizzas to new ways for customers to order. Its CEO, Steve Doyle, is a big proponent of listening to employees, and has instituted a variety of new policies, including a relaxed dress code. He is also investing in new technology, like autonomous vehicles for pizza delivery.
He knows that in the ever-changing business world, companies need to keep adapting and changing in order to remain competitive. He uses the metaphor of domino to describe this process, telling his employees that it’s important to pick a major task and make sure to give it full attention before moving onto other tasks. This allows them to build momentum on that “main domino.”