when they succeed, they soar, and when they fail, they fail spectacularly!
Bill Nye (b. 1955)
His TV show for kids only ran for five years in the mid '90s, but the world of scientific education was forever changed by the accessibility and sheer enthusiasm brought by Bill Nye, the erstwhile (perpetual?) Science Guy. Nye, a mechanical engineer once taught by Carl Sagan, has always dressed the part of an unabashed geek (he wore ties every day at a high school that didn't require it); the dapper duds come in handy when he goes swing dancing. He first broke into entertainment after winning a Steve Martin lookalike contest.
Nye regularly submitted applications to be an astronaut at NASA -- rejected every time, due to lack of PhD -- so he's gone another route as the Executive Director of The Planetary Society, advocating and lobbying for continued space exploration in some awesome bowties.
FUN FACT: Nye holds several U.S. patents, including one for ballet pointe shoes (because who wants bloody feet? Nobody.).
Find out more about Bill Nye on Wikipedia.
BOW TIES ARE COOL:
Did you know that Bill Nye has a patent for ballet shoes?! How cool is that? http://seattletimes.com/html/television/2002252736_nye26.html What a great geek of the week, thank you!
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