A domino is a small, thumb-sized, rectangular block that has one face bearing from one to six pips (or dots) or blank and another side with identically patterned markings. It is most often made of bone, silver lip ocean pearl oyster shell, ivory, or a dark hardwood such as ebony. A traditional 28-piece set contains one unique domino for each of the seven possible combinations of two thrown dice.
Dominoes are a generic gaming device used to play a variety of games, including matching the ends of pieces and laying them down in lines and angular patterns to create “domino art.” They can also be used to build structures such as towers and pyramids. Dominos are popular with children and adults and can be found in many stores.
When a domino falls, it transfers a lot of potential energy to the next piece in its line. This energy can then push on that piece, or it may be lost as the next domino loses its momentum. That energy is called kinetic energy, and it’s what makes a long line of dominoes so mesmerizing to watch.
Hevesh’s mind-blowing domino installations have a similar effect on her audience. She begins each project by considering its theme or purpose and brainstorming images or words that might be relevant to the structure she wants to build. Then she draws a domino track on paper, using arrows to show the direction the dominoes will travel when they fall.
Once she’s done planning out the design, Hevesh starts building her domino track. During this step, she considers the amount of space she has and how long she’d like to wait for the dominoes to fall. She also estimates how many pieces she’ll need and calculates the number of turns the track will have.
Before a domino ever reaches the ground, it must first pass through a process called inertia. Inertia is the domino’s natural tendency to resist motion. But when a domino is placed at just the right spot, its inertia is overcome by a nudge from the next domino. As a result, that first domino passes its potential energy to the next domino and it gains momentum until it is ready to fall.
This principle can be applied to learning, too. Some learning challenges impact students in a similar way to falling dominoes. These challenges can cause a student to compensate for the learning difference, but that compensation can actually slow the learning process down and hinder progress. Just like the domino effect, this can lead to frustration as a student tries to navigate through complex tasks without the foundational skills they need to succeed. Fortunately, just as with the domino effect, a nudge from an experienced teacher can kickstart the process of learning.