# Why is 42 the answer to life? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 7, 2014, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-42-the-answer-to-life/690243 "2014-06-07T03:33:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Grestarian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grestarian/32/3227_2.png) [@Grestarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grestarian)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2014, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-42-the-answer-to-life/690243/61 "2014-06-10T21:33:06Z")
I thought the whole narrative construct (and the Deep Thought ‘character’) was a nod to Trurl’s Machine (c.f. Stanislaw Lem’s Cyberiad) with none of that useless philosophical underpinning or sociological analysis. –G! Kick him again! ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-42-the-answer-to-life/690243/62 "2014-06-11T00:20:12Z")
Shameless Plug Blog post (on Jackie Robinson, Douglas Adams, and moi) ---
**Author:** ![cococ173](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3ab097/32.png) [@cococ173](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cococ173)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-42-the-answer-to-life/690243/63 "2014-06-11T01:01:51Z")
I know nothing about 42 but I did figure out the entire puzzle where 14k in a fgd probably appeared. I saved it and have to search to see what it was. Can’t remember. Wish I was here for the original thread. ---
**Author:** ![cococ173](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3ab097/32.png) [@cococ173](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cococ173)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-42-the-answer-to-life/690243/64 "2014-06-11T02:36:25Z")
I know I typo’d - fpd. Sadly, that exact question was not on the one I did. Instead it had 24k in PG and also 14 L in a S. Sorry. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-42-the-answer-to-life/690243/65 "2014-06-11T03:02:40Z")
> [@cococ173](#): > > Instead it had 24k in > PG and also 14 L in a S. Sorry. 24 karats in pure gold. 14 lines in a sonnet. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-42-the-answer-to-life/690243/66 "2014-06-11T05:53:03Z")
> [@Crotalus](#): > > I’m pretty sure Chessic Sense’s answer was a joke, like many others offered. Part of the setup for those games is that the result is a familiar phrase or saying. Well, it should satisfy the punters on the chat-show circuit. “How many roads must a man walk down?” 😉 ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2014, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-42-the-answer-to-life/690243/67 "2014-06-11T13:14:11Z")
I must admit since this is not my problem, I just didn’t see it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-42-the-answer-to-life/690243.md?page=3)