Numbers

Today is the 28th of April.

28 is a perfect number, being equal to the sum of its divisors:

1+2+4+7+14 = 28

As the number of days in the lunar cycle, the letters in the Arabic alphabet and the prophets before Muhammad, 28 also has a mystical perfection once said to prove the connection between God and the cosmos.

28 is also the top speed of a lone lobster in cm per sec.

COMPETITION: More "26 L of the A" (Letters of the Alphabet) puzzles, with three Chambers Dictionary prizes for answers opened on 10 May.

1 S D N M a S

2 T D (A a P I a P T)

3 M I a B

4 L G, T L B (A F)

5 S O a P

Entries to: Pastimes, The Independent, 1 Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London E14 5DL.

14 April competition report:

Answers: 10 Little Niggers of Agatha Christie, 12 Angry Men, 14 July Bastille Day in France, 15 Men on the Dead Man's Chest; 20-Twenty Vision. Prizes to Yvonne McLean (Colchester), Stephen Boswell (Ipswich), Mary Mulcahy (Dublin).