Vermont Public Television Program Highlights for July 12 to 18:

July 12: Sunday evening offers two programs for cooling off while learning. At 7 p.m., "Globe Trekker" goes to the Alps for ski tours from Chamonix to Zermatt, taking in Mont Blanc and the Matterhorn, and sampling regional cuisine.

At 8 p.m., "Nature" focuses on polar bears, which evolved to live and hunt in the frozen Arctic. As their habitat changes and food sources decline, their existence is threatened.

At 9 p.m., "Masterpiece Mystery!" presents another new "Miss Marple" caper. Agatha Christie's spinster sleuth meets a woman on a train who describes murders in her village.

July 13: Monday at 7:30 p.m. on "Profile," Fran Stoddard interviews Ann Macksoud, a documentary filmmaker from Woodstock, Vt.

At 9 p.m. on "History Detectives," the team of experts looks at historical mysteries, including the identity of a child who may have been exhibited in an incubator at the 1933 Chicago World's Fair.

July 14: Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. on "VPT's Outdoor Journal," Lawrence Pyne fishes for shad with Forest Woodruff along the Connecticut River.

At 9 p.m., astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson hosts another episode of "Nova scienceNOW." Stories include drugs that may aid people with muscular dystrophy, the demise of the dinosaurs and the phenomenon of the northern lights.

July 15: Wednesday at 7:30 p.m., the new series "Roadside Stories With Bob Wilson" continues. The host experiences a ropes course in Vermont and goes for a ride with a fisherman in Connecticut.

At 8 p.m. on "Time Team America," experts have three days to wade into South Carolina swamps to find the truth about North America's first human inhabitants.

At 9 p.m., the four-part series "The Ascent of Money" continues. Historian Niall Ferguson examines the history of money, looking this week at the close relationship between money and war.

At 10 p.m., "Wide Angle: Birth of a Surgeon" goes to Mozambique, where a bold grassroots initiative trains midwives in advanced surgery.

July 16: Thursday at 7:30 p.m., "Food Trip With Todd English" pursues culinary adventures across Tuscany in a vintage Alfa Romeo.

At 8 p.m., the two-part special "Great Lodges of the National Parks" returns. The first program visits Death Valley's Furnace Creek and other spots.

At 9 p.m., the series "Inside" goes behind the scenes of a Russian space launch to find what it's like being blasted 20,000 miles into space

July 17: Friday at 10 p.m., "P.O.V." presents "The Reckoning." The filmmaker followed the International Criminal Court across four continents over three years to document the work of prosecuting war crimes and crimes against humanity.July 18: Saturday at 8 p.m. on "The Thin Blue Line," Inspector Fowler (Rowan Atkinson) finds his anniversary with Sgt. Dawkings will be interrupted by the Queen's birthday celebration.

At 10 p.m., "Austin City Limits" rebroadcasts a show featuring Lucinda Williams and Nashville's Old Crow Medicine Show.