ITHACA, N.Y. -- This one's for the kids. Bill Nye "The Science Guy" will visit Cornell University in his role as a Frank H.T. Rhodes Class of '56 University Professor and give a free public show for children at the Ithaca Sciencenter, Tuesday, April 1.

Cornell alumnus and television personality Nye will give a public talk, "Where There's Just a Little Air," Tuesday, April 1, from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. at the Sciencenter, 601 First St. in Ithaca. Intended for elementary- and middle-school audiences, Nye's talk will describe the work of the late Cornell astronomer and professor Carl Sagan, the atmosphere on Mars, and it will be accompanied by demonstrations from Nye's book, The Truth About Dinosaurs .

The event is free, but tickets are required and limited. One hundred tickets will be available on a first-come, first-served basis (limit of two per person) at the Sciencenter starting Wednesday, March 26, at 10 a.m. Those without tickets can view the April 1 presentation by closed circuit television in the lobby of the Sciencenter.

This is Nye's third visit to Cornell in his role as a Rhodes professor-at-large, and he will be on campus March 30-April 5. A 1977 graduate of Cornell's Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, he will speak at the Cornell Society of Engineers Conference, April 4, and will participate in undergraduate classes in communications, earth and atmospheric sciences, mechanical and aerospace engineering, astronomy and physics. He will also meet with students from the Society of Physics and the Cornell Teacher Education program, as well as staff from the National Digital Library Project.

Nye is a spokesperson, consultant and on-air host for Noggin Television (MTV Networks). His latest book, released in December 2002, is Bill Nye the Science Guy's Great Big Dinosaur Dig . Nye is best known for his weekly, half-hour, Emmy Award-winning show, "Bill Nye, The Science Guy," which aired from 1992 to 1998.