So you think you know 42, do you? Most of us recognise it as The Answer To The Ultimate Question Of Life, The Universe, And Everything, but it has a much deeper meaning than you'd think, going beyond things related to the popular meaning of the number. For instance, 42 is...

• The length in centimetres of the Australian Numbat.

• The number of the last rule in cricket, which dictates fair and unfair play.

• The number of holes in Connect Four.

• The number of a Street in New York City which became a musical.

• The age at which Elvis Presley died.

• The number of minutes it would take to ride the Gravity Sled.

• A common gear ratio for the front gear of a bicycle.

• The temperature in °C at which bacteria will accept new plasmids in genetic engineering.

• The number of months 'The Beast' will hold the earth, according to Revelations.

• The Type number of Sheffield-class destroyers.

• The year (BC) in which Tiberius was born.

• The number of territories in Risk.

• The number of earth years a day on Uranus lasts.

• The jersey number of baseball legend Jackie Robinson.

• The maximum angle that can occur between a ray of light, a raindrop and the human eye before a rainbow disappears.

• The largest number of evil creatures Gimli the dwarf can kill in one battle.

• The chapter describing the universe in Lao Tsu's 'Tao Te Ching'.

• The number of hours it takes to get to Tokelau by boat.