Bill Nye, a.k.a. "The Science Guy," will be coming to Cornell University as a Frank H.T. Rhodes Class of '56 Professor, Oct. 12-18. During his stay, Nye will give a free public lecture, "Living on a Speck," Tuesday, Oct. 16, at 7:30 p.m. in Statler Auditorium on campus.

Tickets are required for the lecture and will be available beginning Oct. 11 on campus at the Willard Straight Hall ticket office, the service centers at Noyes Community Center and the Robert Purcell Community Center, and off campus at the Sciencenter, 601 First St., Ithaca.

Other highlights of Nye's visit will include: the opening address at the first universitywide conference on K-12 science, math, engineering and technology outreach, Oct, 13; an address to about 100 alumni on the Mars Surveyor mission with Jim Bell, assistant professor of astronomy, Oct. 13; and participation in the community build at Ithaca's Sciencenter (he's on the Sciencenter's board), Oct. 14. He also is scheduled to meet with first-year engineering students; the staffs of the National Science Digital Library and the Cornell Center for Materials Research; and classes in mechanical and aerospace engineering, astronomy, design and environmental analysis, and education

Nye, who will be a Rhodes Class of '56 Professor until 2004, is a 1977 graduate of Cornell's Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. He is best known for his weekly, half-hour, Emmy Award-winning shows, "Bill Nye, The Science Guy," which aired on PBS from 1992 to 1998 and currently are being rerun on the Disney Channel.

Recently, Nye has been working on a new book, Bill Nye the Science Guy's Dinosaur Dig , and serving as a consultant with the environmental vehicle division of General Motors.

The Rhodes Class of '56 professorships are awarded for a period of one to five years, and appointees are considered full members of the Cornell faculty. The Rhodes professorship program is overseen by the Cornell A.D. White Professors-at-Large Program.

For more information about Bill Nye visit his web site at http://www.billnye.com.