Creating Mind-Blowing Domino Installations
Dominos are small rectangular blocks, often made of wood or plastic, with a blank side and a set of dots resembling those on dice. These dots, called pips, identify the domino’s end and determine its value. A traditional domino has one unique piece for each possible combination of ends, from zero to six (often referred to as a “double six” set). Larger sets exist with more than 28 unique pieces. A single domino can be used in a variety of games with rules that vary according to the desired outcome and the particular arrangement of pips on each piece.
Dominoes are popular toys and can be arranged in elaborate designs such as long chains or intricate castles. They are also used in a number of math and science experiments, including studying the effects of gravity on objects. In addition to their educational value, dominoes are a lot of fun to play with. Many children like to line them up in rows and then knock them down.
Hevesh first discovered her love of dominoes as a child, when she began creating her own domino setups for fun. She started posting videos of her creations online, and now she’s a professional domino artist, with more than 2 million YouTube subscribers. Hevesh creates mind-blowing domino installations for movies, TV shows, and even events, such as a recent album release party for pop singer Katy Perry. Her largest projects involve thousands of dominoes and can take several nail-biting minutes to fall.
When Hevesh sets up her dominoes, she starts by considering the theme or purpose of the installation and brainstorming images or words that might be relevant. She then follows a version of the engineering-design process to plan out the design and layout of the dominoes. She then draws out the plan on paper to scale and uses a ruler to ensure all the dominoes are lined up properly.
Once she’s satisfied with her design, Hevesh carefully places the dominoes on a flat surface. Then she begins arranging them, placing them on top of each other to create the desired pattern. She can use her hands to nudge the dominoes into place, but for more intricate designs, she uses a tool called a domino wand.
Once the first domino is in place, it begins to convert its potential energy into kinetic energy, which provides the push needed to knock over the next domino. This continues for the entire chain, until all of the dominoes have fallen. This is the essence of the Domino Effect, and it’s why a single domino can cause such a large chain reaction.