Dominoes and the Law of Inertia
Dominoes are small, rectangular blocks that have a variety of numbers of spots or pips. They are used in many games and are also made into elaborate patterns when stacked up. When one domino is knocked down, it often triggers a chain reaction, knocking down hundreds or thousands of others.
Dominos are a form of entertainment that can be played for fun or as an educational tool. They are also used in a number of business and scientific applications.
Lily Hevesh, a professional domino artist, has been creating spectacular domino setups for movies, TV shows, and events since she was 10. She’s now 20 and has more than 2 million subscribers on her YouTube channel.
Before she creates a set of dominoes, she tests them to make sure that they’ll work in the exact way she wants them to. She films the test versions in slow motion, allowing her to make adjustments before she actually puts them up on a wall.
When Hevesh sets up her dominoes, she uses a grid of pieces that enables her to create intricate designs that look impressive when they’re knocked down. But what makes these installations truly impressive isn’t the way that a single domino falls but rather the chain reaction that occurs when a single domino is knocked down.
Hevesh is fascinated with the way that dominoes work and how a single domino can start a chain reaction that will knock down thousands of other dominoes. She believes that this is due to the way that a domino reacts to gravity and the effect it has on its surroundings.
Physicist Stephen Morris says that the reason why dominoes fall is because they have potential energy, or stored energy based on their position. This stored energy is converted to kinetic energy as they fall, which makes them slide against one another and push against the surface they’re on.
According to physics, the amount of potential energy a domino has is proportional to its weight. That means that if a domino has more potential energy than it weighs, it will fall sooner.
In terms of physics, this is the same concept as the law of inertia. When a domino is upright, it resists the pull of gravity, which is why they often stand right where they are.
This same principle can be applied to other types of energy. For example, when a car crashes or a rocket launch, the kinetic energy created by the crash or the rocket launch is used to propel it forward.
Similarly, when a domino is placed on a table, it will stay there until someone moves it. Eventually, it will move out of the way, making space for the next domino to fall.
A similar effect can be seen in medical settings, where a patient may get one infection but then come into the hospital with a different or worse infection. This can happen because the doctor who was treating the first patient didn’t properly clean or disinfect their hands before starting to treat the second or third patient.