NEW YORK, June 19 — William Sanford Nye got his start doing sketch comedy, made his name as Bill Nye the Science Guy in children’s television and now runs an organisation dedicated to sending spacecraft to other planets. Two years ago, he added the title of bicoastal New Yorker, dividing his time between Los Angeles and Manhattan’s Upper West Side, where he is finishing work on a book called Everything All at Once: How Nerds Solve Problems and a series of children’s books called Jack and the Geniuses. Among his favourite things about life in New York: the subway system. “Are you kidding me?” Nye, 60, said. “It’s amazing. Carries a billion people a year. For US$2.75 (about RM12) you can go anywhere. Come on, people.”

The Aging Guy: I get up in time to watch Meet the Press. There’s three ways to know that you’re old. When I sit on my porch in Studio City in Los Angeles, I yell at cars to slow down. Slow down! Then, it’s not uncommon to be out there in shorts pulling weeds with one hand and a cup of coffee in the other hand, talking to the neighbours about how hot it’s going to be. And the third thing is when you decide that watching “Meet the Press” is a valuable use of your time.

Coffee is a mainstay for Nye, who did sketch comedy before he became Bill Nye the Science Guy on children’s television and later joined an effort to send spacecraft to other planets.

The Java Guy: Coffee is the focus. Coffee is the whole thing. I have multiple technologies, but the main coffee thing here is this Dutch brand that really is good. It’s the Moccamaster, and the brand is Technivorm.

The Cowguy: I buy boxes of Fisher Scone mix online from Amazon and I make scones, and usually a poached egg. And the thing that goes on in the background is Ranger Doug’s Classic Cowboy Corral. It’s on Sirius XM satellite radio. When I was a kid, I had a cowboy hat and six-guns on my belt. I’m not saying it’s politically correct or good. They celebrate that music, because almost all of it has this optimism of, “Give me a home where the buffalo roam and the skies are not cloudy all day.”

Bill Nye at a hardware store in New York, June 12, 2016.

The Handy Guy: And then almost always, I come up with some reason to go to the hardware store. I live in an apartment in New York — what could you possibly need at the hardware store? I come up with things.

The Exercise Guy: In my building there’s a gym, and having a gym in the building is just fantastic. Cause you use it. I started working out a few years ago when I got worried about my posture.

The Peanut Butter Guy: For lunch, I might have a sandwich or peanut butter and apples. That’s a big thing with me.

The Writer Guy: I gotta get 1,000 words a day, but I try to get 1,200 or 1,500 a day. I write for an hour, then walk around the apartment and do something that doesn’t need to be done. Put away dishes or something. Then I write for another hour.

The Podcast Guy: Often on Sundays I record five minutes for Planetary Radio, which is the podcast for the Planetary Society. We have 50,000 members around the world, and we’re growing, and you should join. Our niche is planetary missions, spacecraft going to other worlds.

Bill Nye points out a leak in a pipe in the gym at his apartment complex in New York, June 12, 2016.

The Space Guy: We’re trying to get a mission to Europa at Nasa. Two weeks ago I was at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo (in California), and we had the latest test of our LightSail spacecraft, which will be pushed through space by sunlight. We hope to launch in the spring on the SpaceX Falcon Heavy. SpaceX is Elon Musk’s company, and we are what’s called a secondary payload.

The Dinner Guy: Four times in the last six weeks, my close friend Robert Picardo has come over and cooked. He played the doctor on Star Trek: Voyager. Otherwise, my girlfriend and I will go out to dinner at some of the little restaurants.

The Philosopher Guy: I was legitimately criticised for an offhand remark about philosophy, so I’ve been reading books about philosophy, trying to catch up. The process of science, you could make a reasonable claim, is actually natural philosophy.

The Sleep Guy: I do not have a television in the bedroom. Bedroom’s for other things. — The New York Times

Bill Nye said he is also trying to learn how to play the piano. — Picture by George Etheredge/The New York Times