Domino, a cousin to playing cards and dice, is used in many different games. The name comes from a Latin word that means “falling together.” A domino is a rectangular piece with a line down the center separating it into two square ends. Each end has a number of spots, or pips. The pips indicate the outcome of a roll of a die or the result of a draw in a card game. Dominoes have a long history, dating back to the 1300s. They are also a powerful metaphor for life.

A domino effect occurs when a small change in one thing triggers an entire chain of events. For example, a Domino’s employee might be treated unfairly by another employee and this may lead to a chain of negative consequences, like a workplace dispute or a lawsuit. A domino effect can be positive as well, like when a company listens to customer feedback and makes changes that improve their products or services.

As a child, Hevesh enjoyed setting up dominoes on the floor and watching them fall over. Now, she creates mind-boggling domino setups using a version of the engineering-design process. She starts by considering the theme or purpose of the setup and brainstorms images or words she might want to use. Next, she plans the sequence of how to place each domino. Finally, she creates a model of the layout and checks it for any problems.

In addition to their role in gaming, dominoes can be used as a teaching tool. They are often used to demonstrate a variety of topics, including probability and patterns. They can even be used in creative writing, to help students understand narrative arcs and point of view.

While the domino game has been around for centuries, the word domino did not appear until 1750. Its earlier sense referred to a hooded cloak worn with a mask during carnival season or at a masquerade. The etymology of the word is unclear, but it may have been influenced by the color and design of the domino pieces.

In the X-Men comic books, Domino is a mutant bodyguard and close ally of the time-traveling Cable (Nathan Summers). After a battle with the feral Grizzly, she and her brother Lazarus joined a team of S.H.I.E.L.D agents, including G.W. Bridge and Danielle Moonstar, in Operation: Zero Tolerance. The group infiltrated a medical research facility that they believed was doing anti-mutant research and posed as camera crews. They discovered that the facility was actually run by a cyborg named Donald Pierce and his mercenary Reavers, and Domino helped them defeat the mutant-devouring Skornn entity. Later, Domino was hired by Bridge to investigate the activities of the deranged Weapon X program and was recruited into X-Corporation’s Hong Kong branch where she worked with Cable and battled against John Sublime’s Third Species mutant organ harvesting movement. Domino and Cable were romantically involved for a while.