shootings, but they've seen the reduction in homicides. thanks to trauma centers, hospitals where people who might have died from gunshot wounds 10 or 20 years ago are now surviving. and they're taking their cue from afghanistan and the war there where lots of our military are surviving. >> a host of influences here. criminologist jack levin of northeastern university, thanks so much for your time and expertise. appreciate it. >> thank you, fredericka. >> and happy new year. all right. we've got much more straight ahead in the "newsroom." right now it's 3:00 eastern time. i'm fredericka whitfield. here's a look at our top stories. on the heels of a massive snowstorm, a fierce arctic cold front is sweeping across the country threatening to push low temperatures even lower and possibly shattering records across the u.s. and we have the results of a new study on vitamin e and

alzheimer's disease. hear what happened when patients took the antioxidant every day and what the lead researcher is saying about the findings. plus, a setback for women trying to land a combat role in the u.s. marines' mandatory physical requirements for females now being delayed. we'll tell you why and what effect that could have on the battlefield. a powerful blast of arctic weather is about to sweep its way across the u.s. and it's headed for tens of millions of people who were already hit by this week's massive snowstorm. the national weather service says this could be an historic event with temperatures plummeting to record low levels in parts of the midwest, and that cold air will head east at the start of the week. southern states are also expected to feel some of the pain. people in boston including our own margaret conley, i guess

they're trying to get used to this, but i hope you're also bracing for a second blast. margaret, how are people holding up there? >> reporter: fred, we're seeing more and more people brave the cold out on the streets today. massachusetts got up to two feet of snow over the last couple days. and temperatures last night were near record lows. today a lot of people have been frankly spending time shoveling out their parking spaces, shoveling out near ltheir driveways. i just want to show you what people have done to hold their parking space. we have a postal service box right there across the street. next door we have a fan box. someone just put snow inside that discarded box. we've got a cone in the back where they've been shoveling snow. over here we have a little pink kid's rocking chair holding the spot. >> i can't believe this works! >> reporter: that's right. it's worked. and we've been out here for hours, and all of these spots have not been taken. but fred, we have to prepare. there's been snow. there's been wind, and we are

going to be having a lot of rain here. that's going to come in tomorrow night and into monday. we've been getting already warnings from emergency workers about people's roofs. we've got heavy snow, the rain on top of that. there could be structural problems, so they're warning people to clear their roofs and be very careful when they go up to try to do that, fred. >> margaret conley, thanks so much. folks are heeding the warning of more to come. there may be more to come in new york as well. our rosa flores is on long island where they had to close roads for a bit because the storm was so bad. new yorkers are pretty hearty, too, but how are they dealing with this? >> reporter: hey, fred. well, let me say that it's nice and sunny here, but it's deceiving because it is very cold. it's in the upper 20s r, you wod say, but let me set the scene. i'm on the southern shore of the

island, right in the center of the island, and folks here saw about a foot of snow, but that didn't stop them. the streets were plowed. they were sanded. they were salted. and so everything here in this community is definitely up and running. now, i've got doug here with me, and he is a business owner here. and he lives in a neighboring town. and you were telling me just a moment ago about your drive here. tell me about that. >> right. i live about three miles away in oakdale. and i took all the side streets. there was snow on the ground on the streets, but the going was okay. i took it slow. and it was fine. i got here in about ten minutes. >> reporter: you know, doug, one of the things that really stands out to me about this town, it's very quaint. there's a lot of little shops here. there's a lot of people who come here just to go to shops like yours. everybody's very friendly. so i imagine that you guys like tourists, like people to come here and enjoy this little town. >> yeah, absolutely.

sable is a beautiful town. a lot of small stores. you get to see a lot of people, the same people. and in the summertime, it's a big tourist town. we're right next to fire island. you can take the ferry right across. it takes about 15 minutes. yeah, it's a beautiful town. i love it here. >> reporter: let's talk about the weather again because one of the things that we're expecting is this new wave of arctic blast. we're going to get some rain, and then the temperatures are going to drop again. and people are worried about the black ice. is that something that you're considering on your way -- on your drive here? i know that the department of transportation is trying to take precautions to make sure that the streets are safe. >> yeah, they did a pretty good job. the side streets still have snow, but yeah, we're concerned with the black ice. just take it slow and give a little more time to get to work. i usually can get here in about ten minutes. i took my time. you know, 15, 20 minutes if you go slow. but it's not too bad. it's cold, but, you know, it's a beautiful day. >> reporter: wonderful.

doug, thank you so much. >> you're welcome. >> reporter: we really appreciate you taking the time. like doug was saying, fred, the wise words are, be very careful out on the roads. be careful because of the black ice. and if you can stay home, you want to stay home. fred? >> great advice. meantime, rosa, i understand you and your crew had to be rather inventive and improvise a little bit in order for this live shot to happen by use of videophone -- >> reporter: say that again. did you ask me a question? >> yeah, i'm asking you, you've had to be very inventive because this weather is so brutal that it even froze our satellite truck. so the reason why we're seeing you now is because you were improvising with a videophone. tell us about that adventure. >> reporter: oh, i know. i've got to tell you about macgyver who is our photojournalist. >> aptly named. >> reporter: i think we can even pan to show you the contraption we have in our truck because

that's what we had to do in order for us to go live. yeah, our truck burned. we changed a battery and all of a sudden the signal was gone. so our macgyver, our ken here, our photojournalist here at cnn, built a contraption for us while we were waiting. and that's how we're able to go live, fred. >> my gosh. next time maybe you'll be able to show it to us because i know there are restrictions right now on his mobility. we want to see what that contraption is and how you were able to come to us this way. we're glad it all worked out. rosa flores, thanks so much on long island. try to stay warm and continue to be inventive, as you are. thank you. a close call, meantime, in montana after a driver loses control there and then plunges into an icy river. the driver of this suv was taken to the hospital friday and treated for hypothermia after her car slid off the icy road. my goodness. rescue teams were in the water for an hour before they were able to pull her out.

there were no other passengers in the car. incredible. you think getting your car stuck in snow is bad? well, how about thick ice. cars in canada were in thick ice, believe it or not. frozen solid to the ground right there. first, only a little ice held down the cars, but then after three days of freezing temperatures, the ice thickened, covering the tires. even the doors on some of the cars there in winnipeg at this parking lot. brutal. 140 million people, nearly half of this country, will be getting hit by a new round of winter weather. alexandra steele is watching this cold front. alexandra, it seems like nobody is going to be spared. >> can you imagine 140 million americans, fred, feeling temperatures at zero or below? between now and wednesday. >> whew! >> whew! let's talk about it. we talked about the cold. it certainly was cold. the snow came, the cold was

there on the backside of that nor'easter. this is a different animal. this is actually a piece of the polar vortex which is the coldest air in the northern hemisphere. so the coldest air we've seen in two decades here in the u.s. so forecast windchills, i'm going to time it out for you from sunday into monday. so this is what it's going to feel like. watch duluth go from the 30s to 50 below. sunday at 4:00, heading to the game perhaps, 14 below is what it will feel like in green bay. as we head towards sunday night, 45 below in duluth. and then we get into the 50s. it's all moot at that point through 40 or 50 below. but that's the beginning of this really cold arctic air. monday and tuesday's kind of the heart of this arctic air for the greatest number of people being impacted. record cold. minneapolis, 18 below air temperature. not even windchill. the records from the early 1900s. 1909 when it was 14 below. and also remember yesterday, preemptively for monday, the whole state has canceled schools

for the kids in minnesota. now actually areas in wisconsin, too. public schools canceling for monday, too cold for school. chicago, all-time coldest daily highs expected. and even in cincy and detroit, what we're talking about is a five-day stretch subzero, the longest they've ever seen it. watch some of these numbers and the differential between the temperatures, the highs and then where they go. chicago, sunday, 11. 13 below air temperature. incredibly cold there. it's going to be that monday and tuesday time frame. even in new york, new york actually is going to have rain on sunday. and then into monday. but then comes the cold air. so it's going to go from 50 to 14, fred. >> oh, gosh. >> on monday, the cold air and the precipitation are missing each other. so it would have been another bang-up snowstorm, but it's not. the rain's going to come, and then it's going to leave and then the cold air filters in behind it. nashville developing 40 degrees sunday into monday. >> seven degrees in nashville on monday? oh, boy. >> even atlanta, georgia.

this one's penetrating the southeast. more so than we saw with the last one. >> this is a big one. this is one giant cold hand giving everybody a big slap. >> that's right. >> all right. thanks so much, alexandra. appreciate that. in about an hour, the nfl playoffs kick off. but in the first game, the weather won't actually matter. that's because the indianapolis colts are hosting kansas city inside the domed lucas oil stadium. that's the afc wild card game. but the nfc game tonight in philly, well, temperatures are going to be below freezing when the eagles take on the new orleans saints. it's going to be about 24 degrees when the game begins. the good news, wind won't be a factor. so it won't feel even more bitterly cold. if that's some kind of relief. all right. former first lady barbara bush is back at home this afternoon after being discharged from the hospital. she was admitted six days ago to be treated for pneumonia. in a statement today, she thanked all of her doctors and

nurses. the former first lady is 88 years old. and rock 'n' roll legend phil everly has passed away. ♪ wake up little suzy ♪ wake up >> the everly brothers soared to the top of the music world in the late 1950s and early '60s with hits just like that one, "wake up little suzy." and they influenced the beatles as well. phil everly's wife told "the l.a. times" he died friday in california due to complications from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. he was 74 years old. "fast & furious" actor paul walker died within minutes of that terrible car crash. that's according to the coroner's final report. we'll tell you what doctors found. and a possible breakthrough in treating alzheimer's disease. a common vitamin may hold some promise for those suffering.

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the final coroner's report on paul walker's death is out, and it reveals the actor's life ended just like his movie title, fast and furious. the 15-pam document reveals walker and his friend died soon after their porsche crashed. our allen duke has details. >> fredericka, the coroner's report concludes that the death of paul walker was an accident. despite the fact that roger rhodas was driving the car well above the posted speed limit of 45 miles per hour at 100-plus miles per hour, it was not ruled manslaughter. it was ruled an accident. of course, rhodas, the driver, who could have possibly have faced charges as a result of the crash died. in fact, he died almost instantly after the car slammed into a light post, and then a couple of trees came to rest and burst into flames.

the autopsy report says that it was the traumatic injuries that these two men suffered that killed them along with burns from the car. the car was destroyed by the fire, and these men were severely charred by it. in fact, it took dental records in order to identify the two men. what we found from this autopsy report that we wondered about is how long did they live? and according to the report, not very long. in fact, the study of their tracheas showed very little soot in there which would indicate they were not breathing in that dark black smoke from the porsche fire. so that at least may be some comfort to the fans and the family who would be led to believe that these men didn't suffer that long. and by the way, the movie "fast & furious 7" is back on track for a release in april of 2015. fredericka? >> thanks so much, alan. in eureka, california,

police believe they have solved a murder of a priest using evidence found at the murder scene. and what witnesses told them. they have arrested a man. dan simon is on the story. >> reporter: this was father eric freed being formally installed as pastor at st. bernard church in eureka. he had been leading the congregation for three years. >> he was a great teacher, a great mentor. and just a very loving person. that's the biggest thing that i could say. a very loving man. >> reporter: but on wednesday morning, new year's day, he was found dead inside his rectory. police say there was clear evidence of a forced entry and struggle, and the beloved priest died from blunt force trauma. >> holy mary, mother of god. >> reporter: church members seen outside praying. >> absolutely tremendous loss not only for the st. bernard's parish but for our community in general. >> he was about the most charismatic man that -- pastor that i've had. >> reporter: it didn't take long

for authorities to name a suspect. 43-year-old gary lee bullock who in recent days had been no stranger to police. he had been arrested on new year's eve for public intoxication. officers even had to take him to the hospital for an evaluation where he had to be physical reply restrained. he was later taken to jail but released the following day. >> in california, if you're taken to jail for a misdemeanor such as public intoxication, you're normally kept four hours. and then after that four hours you're released. >> reporter: later that evening a security guard heard a noise in the area of the church. he reported seeing a person matching bullock's description and says he told him to leave after a short conversation. it's now new year's day 9:00 a.m., and father freed is supposed to lead a service but doesn't arrive. >> it was shock, and i think people knew that something wasn't quite right because a priest just doesn't not show up for mass. and i just think we did what

comes naturally to, which is pray for our pastor. >> reporter: authorities tell us they have no motive. they're calling this a crime of opportunity. they also tell us the suspect drove 45 minutes away to a family member's house in the pastor's car. it was one of bullock's relatives who called police. dan simon, cnn, eureka, california. and a new obstacle for women in combat. all that straight ahead. [ male announcer ] the wright brothers started in a garage. amazon started in a garage. hewlett packard, and disney both started in garages. mattel started in a garage. ♪ the ramones started in a garage. my point? you never know what kind of greatness can come out of an american garage. introducing the 2014 motor trend car of the year. the all new cadillac cts. ain't garages great?

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this is cnn breaking news. >> this just in to cnn. the u.s. may soon be involved in the rescue of those ships stuck in the ice near antarctic ka. australia has called on the u.s. coast guard to send one of its large ice breakers to help two stranded ships that are stuck in ice. the australian maritime safety authority says that the u.s. has agreed to allow one of the coast guard's ice breakers to go to that area. right now two stuck ships off the coast of antarctica. now, all of the researchers and many of the tourists that were on board, a research ship were actually rescued by way of a chinese ice breaker and helicopters earlier in the week. but now the ships are still doomed in that area. all right. the u.s. marine corps has delayed its deadline for new

physical requirements after less than half of female recruits could do the required minimum of three pull-ups. the new standard was meant to take effect january 1st, but now officials are giving the policy a second look. here's chris lawrence. >> reporter: yeah, fred. so few female marines pass this test that officials started worrying they were setting a standard that might push a lot of women right out of the marine corps. military training can be excruciating at its highest levels. but at the bare minimum, a marine's got to be able to do three pull-ups. >> i want to ensure that every marine is successful at maxing out their pull-ups. >> reporter: but more than half the female recruits couldn't do it. so the marines are pushing back the day when it becomes mandatory. >> if you have a failure rate of 55% and 99% of the men are succeeding, obviously this is

not going to work. >> reporter: men have to do three pull-ups minimum to pass the marines fitness test. it takes 20 to earn a perfect score. women had to meet the same minimum. but only need eight pull-ups to score perfect. because so few passed, the marines will let them choose to hang on the bar for 15 seconds and pass without doing any pull-ups. >> wide grip stance. that works best for you. >> reporter: marine corps officials admit pull-ups are better and the flexed arm hang elicits little muscular strength adaptations necessary for a common military task such as pulling oneself over be on sta we obstacles. zoe commanded troops in afghanistan. could you do three pull-ups? >> i was at one point able to do five, but it was probably that first one that took me the longest to get. >> reporter: she says women have to learn how to do pull-ups,

something many have never done. >> you experiment with different techniques. you figure out what other exercises to do. >> reporter: critics say the big push over pull-ups is part of a bigger problem, pressure from the white house to make the military gender neutral. >> something is wrong here. and it's not the women's fault. it's the policy that the marines are pursuing. >> reporter: still, some women are clearly ready. 13 female marines have just passed the grueling 60-day infantry training course. but this postponement, it's a setback for the plan to move thousands of women into combat roles by 2016. now, the marines could impose the three-pull-up standard next year, but there's no guarantee. fred? >> thanks so much, chris lawrence. all right. a new piece of the puzzle in the michael schumacher accident. will a helmet camera show what really happened? and the bitter cold in the u.s., wait until you hear what's coming next from mother nature. [ sneezes, coughs ]

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rough and dry. along came gold bond, rich, absorbs quickly. legs look healed, healthy. gold bond. ultimate lotion, ultimate skin. bottom of the hour now. welcome back. i'm fredericka whitfield. here are the top stories crossing the cnn news desk right now. investigators are examining a camera attached to michael schumacher's ski helmet. the former world champion formula 1 race car driver is in

a french hospital in an induced coma. he suffered severe head injuries from a ski accident last weekend. and according to french media, police seized the camera but have not said if it was rolling at the time of the accident. and the cdc says the number of states reporting widespread flu activity jumped from 10 to 25 last week. widespread means more than half of a state's geographic regions like counties are reporting activities. the most common strain has been h1n1. the c dchdc says six children h died. the mother of joevan boettcher is suing the kansas city chiefs. it claims the team ignored the player's concussion symptoms. belcher killed his girlfriend and then committed suicide in front of team officials in 2012. belcher's mom wants a jury trial and more than $15,000 in

damages. his body was exhumed last month, and his brain is being examined for any sign of damage. and singer clay aiken is reportedly considering trading his place on stage for a seat in congress. "the washington blade" reports the former "american idol" competitor has talked to d.c. political operatives about running in his home state of north carolina. he became a best-selling artist after finishing second place on the tv show back in 2003. aiken himself has not commented on the possibility of running for office. all right. the storm has made life very difficult for millions of people in the northeast, but it's also made for some great picture taking and video taking. and our viewers have been sending in i-reports and posting them on social media as well. jennifer merrily has been watching all this. >> you may remember there's a football game being played tonight. katherine got creative when she

tweeted this picture supporting her team. "who dat in the snow? who dat loves a chilly breeze." saints fans will know exactly what katherine is talking about there. and this next picture was taken just outside minneapolis, minnesota. take a look. that's my parents' neighborhood. >> oh. >> the governor canceled school on monday because of the drop in temperature. and the temperatures there are supposed to be in the negative double digits on monday. that says, "yeah, no school on monday." joking around with that there. check out boris who hails from chicago. >> oh! >> take a look. the 3-year-old rescue dog. yeah. he's in the air. >> looks like he has boots on. >> little red booties keeping those paws warm. he was out chasing squirrels and liza snapped that photo when he was in midair. isn't that adorable? i love the red booties. >> i do, too. >> milo is a goldendoodle in new

york. she looks like she is just loving that snow. first time in the snow for this dog. but, you know, it's not all fun and games out there. it can be tricky to navigate when you're driving or anything else, especially for a big bus. maybe not four-wheel drive there. the bus in new york looks like it got a little bit stuck, started smoking. some things you need to be thinking about. take precautions. and we want to see what it looks like in your area. please send us pictures to cnn.com/ireport. take a picture inside if you want, if you want to stay warm. >> the safest way. stl >> absolutely. let us know what you see in your area. >> thanks so much, jennifer. appreciate that. big hello to your family out there kind of, you know, roughing it in minneapolis. >> yeah. i think monday will be a little bit worse than today. >> yeah. sorry about that, folks. all right. thanks so much, jennifer. the ice-cold weather isn't a big deal if you live in northern wisconsin. there's an nfl playoff game there tomorrow. and jared greenberg tells us how they're handling the bitter

cold. >> reporter: fred, it begs the question, are they diehard fans or crazy? temps in green bay expected to reach minus 20 with, get this, a windchill around 40 below. you know the cheeseheads. they love their football. they're a hearty bunch. and hundreds of them showed up at lambeau field yesterday to shovel the stands ahead of tomorrow's game. fans braving the bitter cold at lambeau field will get a little something extra to help stay warm. the team providing free coffee and hot chocolate. a local store will also give out about 70,000 hand warmers to those fans. the game could be even colder than the infamous ice bowl which was the nfl's coldest game on record. back in 1967, the windchill was an estimated 48 degrees below zero. it was so cold that day in green bay, the referees reportedly couldn't blow their whistles, and trumpets got stuck to band members' lips. the orange bowl lived up to the hype. and clemson pulled out a huge win. last night taj boyd threw 378

yards. his favorite target, sammy watki watkins. he was a beast. looking for bryant. check out the grab. how did bryant make the catch? spectacular. a whole lot of offense in this one. but it was clemson's defense that sealed the win. braxton miller for ohio state has his pass snagged out of the air by anthony. clemson hangs on for a five-point win in a game that featured 75 combined points. and this is case in point of fans taking things too seriously. emotions ran high on and off the field. an alabama fan jumping into a pile of oklahoma fans. that's not going to end well at all. no word on what started the incident. fans take their football seriously in alabama. maybe it had something to do with alabama losing two straight games for the first time since 2008. fred, we don't see two straight losses for 'bama too often. >> man, that was some kind of throwdown. that was ugly. thanks so much, jared. my goodness.

all right. for people impacted by alzheimer's, any way to slow the disease is so important. so a new study shows something on the vitamin shelf that might help you. we'll let you know what that's all about next. 1111 ]

there could be a glimmer of new hope for people struggling

with alzheimer's. perhaps welcome news for baby boomers who every day are becoming part of the population most affected by the disease. the alzheimer's association estimates today 5 million people 65 and older have alzheimer's. in 2025, that jumps to more than 7 million. and in 2050, a staggering 13.8 million. here's another way to look at it. today, an american develops alzheimer's every 68 seconds. by 2050, that becomes every 33 seconds. pretty sobering. so that makes a new study published this week really critical. it suggests that vitamin e could help patients with mild to moderate alzheimer's. the study shows that taking vitamin e slowed a patient's decline not with their memories but with their ability to perform daily tasks. i'm joined now by the lead author of the study, dr. maurice diskin. good to see you.

does the study mean that vitamin e should be considered as a potential treatment for alzheimer's, too? >> we think so. these were patients who had mild to moderate alzheimer's disease, and they showed that benefit with vitamin e alone. over approximately 2 1/4 years, which was the average length of the trial. we saw benefit not only in slowing down the rate of progression, but also in reducing caregiver time. caregivers were spending about three hours a day taking care of patients. and we knew that during the study that would increase. and in the vitamin e group, that increase was least. >> so then what should happen next to see if vitamin e should indeed become a part of a new type of treatment? >> we think there's evidence for primary care providers to consider vitamin e at this time. we would not recommend that

individuals take this dose of vitamin e on their own. i might mention the dose was 2,000 international units per day. and that's a large dose compared to the dose you would find in a multivitamin, which is about 100. i want to emphasize that this is not a prevention trial. we studied patients with the disease, and it does imply patients without the disease should be taking this dose of vitamin e. >> and that generally would be kind of the reaction that many people would have and say, wait a minute. i'm hearing this. so this means i should go out and take a lot of vitamin e. you're saying that's not the case. meantime, there have been lots of studies prior to that would say sometimes you can take too much vitamin e, that it could be dangerous in high doses. so how do you, you know, strike a balance between that kind of information and that vitamin e should be part of a treatment for those with alzheimer's? >> we were concerned about safety which was monitored very carefully. there was a report in 2005 that

suggested that higher doses of vitamin e, about 400 international units, was associated with increased mortality. we had 613 patients who were randomized, and average age 78. 128 patients died, which is not unexpected. the lowest mortality was in the vitamin e group. so we think from our data that vitamin e certainly is safe. >> wow. fantastic. very enlightening. dr. maurice dysken, thanks so much for your time and happy new year. >> you, too. thank you very much. sanjay gupta m.d. is straight ahead in the next hour. the doctor is here with a preview. >> well, fred, you know, new year's time is a great time to hit the reset button with your health. so i'm going to give you advice on how to stay happy and healthy this year including the checklist you should bring when you see your doctor. also the biggest myths around losing weight. we've got this road map to a smart and healthy new year at

4:30 eastern. fred? >> thanks so much, sanjay. okay. so you know this by now. marijuana, pot legal to buy and sell in colorado. but they're doing more than just smoking it. they're also making it in food. what tweet tresweet treats are there other than pot brownies for sale? we'll show you. [ male announcer ] legalzoom has helped start over 1 million businesses. if you have a business idea, we have a personalized legal solution that's right for you. with easy step-by-step guidance, we're here to help you turn your dream into a reality. start your business today with legalzoom.

much of the focus on making it legal to buy and sell pot in colorado has been on smoking marijuana. cnn's anna cabrera reports it's also being packaged and sold as food. >> hello, ganja gourmet. >> reporter: forget about smoking a joint. >> we have all the edibles you can imagine. >> reporter: and we're not just talking pot brownies. >> this is a 70-milligram pumpkin pie. >> reporter: today the world of marijuana edibles is reaching new extremes. >> hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of different products. >> reporter: you're inside denver ganja gourmet, once a

medical marijuana restaurant. now a pot product supermarket of sorts, specializing in marijuana-infused candy, cookies and krispy treats. so if you have a sweet tooth, this is the way to go. >> ghently the way to go. >> reporter: plus coffee, butter and chamomile tea. there's something here that's sure to make everyone happy. want a protein-packed pot fix? try the peanut butter. gluten free? no problem. diabetic? how about a sugar-free sucker? but why edibles? >> and the reason why i choose edibles, because i'm not into the whole smoking. i'll do it every once in a while, but i cough a lot more. >> reporter: easy on the lungs, odor free. some say it's also easier to control dosing. how do you know the dosage is what you say it is? >> we make our hash oil. that's the base of all of our products. if the hash oil tests out at this percentage of thc and this percentage of the other c

cannabinoids, we can break down what we want. >> reporter: they're in the business of making marijuana edibles. canyon cultivation uses hash oil to create hard candy, drops, breath strips and olive oils. is this your office? your kitchen? what do you call this place? >> so this is the lab. >> reporter: hers is one of dozens of budding edible businesses that are part of the estimated $1.5 billion marijuana industry which analysts say could quadruple in just a few years. >> we like our baklava here. >> reporter: she's busy baking up baklava, netting $3,000 a month. >> buttery goodness. >> reporter: here it's all about the canna butter, roasted for up to 24 hours. the result, a high-potency thc product that is baked into each treat. how many different items do you guys make? >> we have about 44 different products currently. >> reporter: in three years, the customer list has grown from

three dispensaries to 40. and that's just for medical marijuana sales. what do you anticipate with recreational sale of marijuana? >> chaos. craziness. >> reporter: yet state and local regulators are working to keep things under control. while marijuana edibles aren't currently regulated by the fda, colorado marijuana-infused food producers will have to follow new rules in the new year. one of the new rules with marijuana edibles has to do with child-resistant packaging meaning it has to come in an opaque package, and it has to have a two-step process to opening it. keeping people safe especially children is a high priority for this industry under scrutiny. the world is watching. >> we consider ourselves pioneers at the end of prohibition. >> reporter: as cannabis-focused kitchen take a bigger bite out of the marijuana market. anna cabrera, denver. >> buying pot may be legal in colorado, but that doesn't mean it's always easy. here's cnn's jeanne moos.

>> reporter: it's like going to the deli. >> i'll help who's next. >> reporter: but instead of half a pound of ham, it's an eighth of an ounce of pot. each type described lovingly. >> it's a euphoric high. >> reporter: customers seemed euphoric even before smoking. >> yeah! >> reporter: though a few online hid from the cameras, all you have to do is show i.d. to prove you're over 21. then pay cash. 55 bucks or so with tax for an eighth of an ounce that makes five to seven joints. >> a really nice fruity juicy fruit. tastes very much like it smells. >> reporter: customers were doing a lot of smelling, sniffing the bouquets as if it were a fine wine or pungent cheese. >> really nice bud structure on there. >> reporter: appreciating bud structure rather than ordering a bud. weed has gone mainstream. the denver pot, i mean, "the denver post," even reviews pot.

the paper has gone to pot with a website called the cannabist and a marijuana editor that appeared on "the colbert report." >> are you high right now? you're not high now, but do you smoke pot at all? >> i don't smoke pot. i do eat it, though. >> oh, okay. >> reporter: on the cannabist, you can use a map to find a pot store near you or learn about cooking with cannabis. the site has two reviewers who try strains like granddaddy purple and tell you how zonked you'll get. initially the granddaddy gave me a naeice uptick of energy. i could string together the concepts like socks before shoes, but by the time i made it to the shoes, where had the socks gone? now that it's legal, everyone's playing name that pot. >> could you hand me a green crack 8, please? >> great flavor. good energy. >> sour aliens, a cross of sour

diesel and alien technologies. >> reporter: even reporters can pronounce golden goat, but some of these names can get your goat. >> is it baba kush? >> reporter: if you're really nice to the clerks -- >> let's smell the tahoe triangle. >> reporter: -- maybe they'll sing it to you. ♪ tahoe tahoe it's off to smoke we go ♪ >> reporter: jeanne moos, cnn, denver. >> we'll explore all the angles of legalizing marijuana next week in a special series "gone to pot" starting monday night 8:00 eastern on cnn. all right. the pope makes a surprising phone call of who he called and what he said next. and just about a month until the winter olympic becames, and we'll talk to a security expert about how they'll keep the games and the athletes safe.

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at a company that's bringing media and technology together. next is every second of nbcuniversal's coverage 0f the 2014 olympic winter games. it's connecting over one million low-income americans to broadband internet at home.

it's a place named one america's most veteran friendly employers. next is information and entertainment in ways you never thought possible. welcome to what's next. comcastnbcuniversal. but with pamprin, a period means sgo!! pain relievers only relieve pain. multi-symptom pamprin relieves all your symptoms. so there's no stopping you. period. all right, this just in, we understand that a small plane has landed on the major deegan expressway in the bronx, new york, happening near exit 12 on the northbound side of the highway. and we understand this is really near a major intersection there.

there were three people on board this plane. so far it appears there were some minor injuries involving three people, but unclear any more about the circumstances this. but quite alarming to hear that a small plane has landed on a major expressway there in the bronx. we'll keep you posted on all that. and we're just now 34 days away from the start of the winter olympic games in russia. and excitement had been building but then all of that change following two deadly terror attacks. this week 400 miles from the host city. diana magnate takes a look at the security of the games. >> reporter: russian authorities have discovered a link between the two deadly suicide bombings this week. monday morning's attack on a crowded trolley killed 16 and on sunday a massive explosion rocked the city's railway station. this chilling surveillance video captures the horrific incident at the security checkpoint when a suicide bomber detonated 22

pounds of tnt killing 18. authorities now say both bombs contained similar shrapnel, a sign they originated from the same region. the attacks highlight the terrorist threat that russia faces as it hosts the winter olympic games next month in sochi, just 400 miles south of the devastation. >> all of the olympic sites will have physical security, electronic security, everybody will be screened. so, i think it will be difficult for someone -- for a terrorist to set off a bomb inside of a village or venue. >> reporter: russia's president vladimir putin is personally involved in security plans and promising maximum security in sochi. but russian authorities say they will not change security measures they already have in place. confident that they're well prepared. u.s. authorities have offered full support to the russian government in ramping up security measures. in a statement, the united states olympic committee says in part, we're always concerned with the safety of our

delegation and the sochi games are no different in that regard. an effort by the committee to avoid a repeat occurrence of the bombing that killed two at the 1996 olympic games in atlanta. >> what concerns me is when you harden targets, you often force the terrorists to select softer targets. so that makes everything else in sochi and the surrounding area vulnerab vulnerable. >> reporter: targets like transportation hubs where tourists and athletes will travel to and from the games. president putin's claim that he can protect the olympics also rests in part whether he can control the situation in the north caucasus, he claims he can but the terrorists are intent on proving he cannot. diana magnay, moscow. next week we've got a story we'd like to tell you about

"sole survivor." take a look. >> this is the airport where we took off on january 21st, 1985. >> i didn't move here to be near the crash scene. it was just more of a -- i don't know. you think really deep about what you're doing with your life and all the people that were involved with this accident that may have done more with their life. and you feel guilty that you're not using your life to do something better. >> he always talks about it. he is, like, sometimes depressed about it, like, why am i still here i made, like, a fool out of myself, like, i'm not even doing anything with my life and it makes me sad. >> during the course of my life, the last 25 years, i have been curious to know what makes a person heal from a situation that happened to me.

i've never been able to find out or talk to anybody that has been through what i've been through. >> wow. more on george's story and others thursday night at 9:00 watch "sole survivor" right here on cnn. all right, that will do it for me, i'm fredricka whitfield, we'll see you here tomorrow. much more of the "newsroom" ahead with martin savidge. you are in the "cnn newsroom," i'm martin savidge. thanks very much for joining me. this is one of those weeks when the weather is so extreme that it rises to the top of our news. before you say it's january and it's supposed to be cold, let's just hold on a moment. this cold snap that is deeply freezing nearly half the nation right now is exceptional. and even cold weather veterans in the polar bear states are taking their tough talk down just a notch or two this weekend. in parts of minnesota famous for its long and brutal winters, the

temperature will not get above 20 below in the coming days with the windchill 65 degrees below zero. that is the coldest air to wash across minnesota in more than 20 years. chicago, they have more lake-effect snow and then plunging temperatures. sunday night into monday will shoot temperatures to 15 below zero with plenty of chicago's famous wind and even in the normally mild deep south, atlanta, where the giant peach dropped to usher in the new year, the next few days will be colder here than in anchorage, alaska. we'll get the big picture from the cnn severe weather in a center. but let's check in with rosa flores in new york and margaret conley in boston. rosa, a foot of snow on the ground there now. the big freeze on its way. people getting ready? >> reporter: hey, martin. well, let me, first of all, set the scene for you. you can see that the sun is coming down at this hour. it's probably in the 20s right

now here in sayreville, it's in the south of long island, the area got a foot of snow. the good news is that all of the plows were out, the roads were sanded, they were iced and so folks were able to go about their day. but take a look at this. this kind of gives you an idea. this is the story right now. here's the headline "the big chill, frigid follow-up to the snow." that's what people are bracing for because we're going to see rain later and then the temperatures are going to drop. and you know exactly what that means, it's going to mean ice. now, this is a very quaint town. i've got to introduce you to mary. i met mary down the street in a little boutique in a little shop. thank you so much for joining us. you and i were chatting earlier this morning and you were telling me it was very, very cold and you were out and about taking your son. tell me about it. >> i had to leave at 5:30 this morning to take him to school

for his track meet and it was freezing. the car took about 20 minutes to defrost and get ready. and, yeah, i can't believe how cold it is. >> reporter: what was the temperature? >> well, i heard that sayreville was 2 degrees. i don't know where i live, holbrook, was around 10 degrees maybe at that time. so, it was very, very cold. it was very cold. >> reporter: i know a lot of folks from here they live in the neighboring towns and they come here to work. >> yes. >> reporter: tell me about your drive here. kind of what you had to do. i know you had to be very careful. >> i live about ten minutes away. i live two towns away. and the main roads are okay, just the side roads are very icy and slippery. and i actually drove my husband to the train station because he doesn't have a big car. he has a little car and he would have been sliding all over the road. so, yeah, that's what we have to do to get by around here. >> reporter: yeah. and i was also talking to folks about how quaint this little town is. >> oh, yeah. >> reporter: lots of little boutiques. lots of things to do and to buy. unique, a lot of stuff handmade.

tell us about this little town. >> well, it's got great shops and restaurants. and everybody lives in this town and, you know, buys in this town. a lot of gift shops. it's a great place. it's a great place to work and live. >> reporter: mary, thank you so much. >> thank you. >> reporter: and martin, i've got to tell you about something else. we're here and we've seen people running in shorts. now, it's about 29 degrees, maybe 28 degrees. so, there's a lot of brave souls here in the northeast, even though it's cold, even though there's snow out, they're still exercising and making the best of it. martin? >> rosa, thanks very much. to boston now we go where the thermometer sits currently at 23 degrees. add in the wind, though, it feels just 9 degrees. people there including our own margaret conley knows what that feels like. i'm wondering, margaret, are people out and about? >> reporter: yes, they are, martin. and that 23 degrees, that's about 21 degrees warmer than it

was this morning, and overnight there were near record low temperatures. but as you can see, people have started to come out today. we're standing in a parking lot near a church. mass is going to begin at 4:00. so, people have definitely started to go in. one of the biggest obstacles as you can see around me here is also the snow. they've been plowing it and pushing it aside, so people have been trying to maneuver their way around. statewide they had 3,394 plows working through massachusetts, they have capacity of 4,000, that's how much snow they've been having to deal with. as rosa was saying also, we've been through the snow, we've been through the wind, but guess what's coming next? that's right, the rain. tomorrow night and into monday we're expecting a lot of rain. we have emergency workers that have already sent out warnings to people about their roofs because a lot of snow has stacked up. the rain on top of that will make it heavy and they're concerned about roofs actually staying intact. they're warning people to clear off their roofs going forward. and to be very careful when they do that because when you climb

up those ladders it's slippery and it's cold. martin? >> margaret, just so i understand this, right, you'll go from snow to rain and then into extremely cold temperatures again. how is that going to impact the ability to keep people on the road safe? >> reporter: that's right. the roads are actually very dangerous right now. they've been issuing warnings about the possibility of black ice. it's also affected travel. but, again, we've come through the worst of it. i don't even want to say that right now, but it seems like we've come through the worst of it especially when we had the flight, fluffy snow and visibility problems. but right now logan airport we can hear the planes landing and taking off above us. it seems like the flights are on schedule. my flight was canceled last night and it seems like it's on time today. >> we don't want to curse anything, thank you, margaret. when a few airports get shut down by bad weather, it sends the whole system into chaos. more than 3,000 flights were canceled yesterday and nothing

took off or arrived from boston, new york for hours. it mean long lines. as of 90 minutes ago we have a report that nearly 1,100 u.s. commercial airline flights have been canceled today. january, of course, is typically cold. but not cold like this. cnn meteorologist alexandra steele explains what's behind the frigid temperatures. >> martin, it is cold. how about the coldest in two decades for some? so, this is really legitimately cold. what this is, is a piece of the polar vortex which is the coldest air in the northern hemisphere, that's what's coming our way. here are the forecast windchills for tomorrow. you can see this is noon, of course, the game if you're going to be out there, 14 below is what it's going to feel like. the key number what it feels like maybe besting the old 1967 game. 5 is what it's going to feel like in green bay. flint, detroit, you can see how cold it gets. topping it all, though, duluth

feeling like 53 below zero. this really is historic cold, minneapolis on monday, 18 below. the record 14. but dating from 1909, so this is historic on so many fronts not only the windchill dropping to 60 below perhaps. in chicago all-time coldest daily high. and then in cincinnati and detroit potentially the coldest subzero stretch that we've ever seen. take a look at these numbers, chicago a high temperature. these aren't windchills, 13 below, dropping to 20 below and rebounding to 2 and then 18. the monday/tuesday is really the heart of the arctic cold and look what happens in new york. 50 degrees on monday with rain. see, moisture's moving in and it's going to be quite a snowstorm for the midwest, chicago and detroit and indianapolis. but for the northeast, it's not going to be a snowstorm. it's going to be rain. because the moisture comes before the cold air gets this so the timing is being missed. the rain and the warm air, cold air, 14 in new york. dramatic temperature drop and similar to nashville as well. martin?

>> thanks, alexandra. some of the other stories in the news right now, secretary of state john kerry said progress has been made bringing peace to the middle east. today he met for the second time to mahmoud abbas and flew back to jerusalem for a third meeting with benjamin netanyahu in as many days. >> the framework has to be laid down in which the parties can have confidence in that they know what's happening and that the road ahead is real and not illusory. >> kerry shuttled diplomacy to define the borders and other issues like security and the refugee problem. the cdc and this is probably no surprise reports a big jump in flu cases in the last week. now half the nation reporting widespread activity up from ten states a week before. the most severe activity seems to be in the southeast. the cdc said so far it is

looking like a typical flu season which normally peaks in january or february. good news here former first lady barbara bush is spending her first night at home in six days. doctors released her from the houston methodist hospital today. they've been treating the 88-year-old bush matriarch for pneumonia, she thanked the nurses and doctors in a statement, quote, thank you for the best treatment and making sure i got back to george and our dogs as quickly as possible. ♪ wake up little susie wake up ♪ wake up little susie wake up sad news phil eckerly has died at a california hospital. phil seen on the left and his brother don recorded more than 35 hits during their career including "wake up little susie," "bye-bye love" and "all i have to do is green" phil eblerly was 83 years old and the cause of death was not

disclosed. still to come, green bay, wisconsin, prepping for what could be the coldest game in football history with temperatures that may feel 40 below. and they aren't the only ones. plus, the nsa is working on a super computer that could crack any encryption, meaning there's nothing you could to protect your information online. we'll explain next. welcome back. how is everything? there's nothing like being your own boss! and my customers are really liking your flat rate shipping. fedex one rate. really makes my life easier. maybe a promotion is in order.

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live look at the u.s.

capitol, temperature in d.c. 33 degrees. republican senator rand paul has announced a class action lawsuit aimed at stopping nsa surveillance of cell phone use by americans. he said the goal is to uphold the fourth amendment right against unreasonable searches and seizures. he said the data collection program is so widespread and indiscriminate nearly everyone in the country could be affected. >> we now have several hundred thousand people who want to be part of this suit to say to the government and to the nsa, no, you can't have our records without our permission or without a warrant specific to an individual. so, it's kind of an unusual class action suit in the sense that we think everybody in america who has a cell phone would be eligible for this class action suit. >> the nsa meanwhile denies that its actions violate the privacy of u.s. citizens. all of us do rely on some level of encryption to keep our online bank and medical records safe from prying eye. but encryption might be considered a dirty word by the

nsa, cnn's brian todd said the agency is working on a new generation of supercomputer that can break even the strongest of security codes. >> it's not just the encryption codes that guard government and business secrets that the nsa will be able to break. it's also the encryption many of us use every day to access our bank accounts, medical records. when the nsa finishes this so-called quantum computer, just about all that encryption can be broken and it may be pointless to try to protect anything online. >> reporter: encryption, those scrambled codes that protect our most sensitive information online shield the most top secret crucial data that governments possess from hackers and cyberspies. now, the nsa is reportedly developing what's called a quantum computer. when it's complete, it will be able to break just about any encryption in the world. when nsa gets that quantum computer, what will it be able to do it? >> it will be a game changer. it will make it a lot easier for nsa to break the code that foreign governments use, that foreign criminal groups use.

>> reporter: but nsa will also be able to break encryption codes that we all use to protect our bank accounts, e-mails, medical records, a privacy advocate say that may lead to a world with no secrets, where it would be almost pointless trying to protect anything. >> we don't know, in fact, what the capabilities are, what steps are being taken to undermine the types of encryption that you and i might rely, for example, when we go online to purchase a book or download some music. >> recently we learned that -- >> reporter: the quantum computer program is revealed in documents provided by nsa leaker edward snowden and reported by "the washington post." how would this supercomputer work? when a regular computer tries to solve a problem, it has to go through each possible solution one by one by one until it arrives at the correct answer. what makes a quantum computer so special is that it simultaneously tries every possibility. arriving at the correct answer much quicker. according to the documents, the quantum computers being developed at this lab in college park, maryland. quantum computing is so

difficult to master and this computer is so fragile that it's being built in special room-sized cages that have to seal out any electromagnetic energy in the air like cell phone or gps signals. how close is nsa to finishing this computer? experts say it could be anywhere from five years away or a decade or more. contacted by cnn, the nsa wouldn't comment on the project. >> cnn's brian todd. thanks very much. coming up, green bay packers fans bracing for what could be the coldest game in football history. just how low will those temperatures go? let's just say that they'll be happy with zero. plus, there are passionate football fans and then there's this.

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speaking of brr, you are looking at green bay, wisconsin, they should enjoy the heat while they have it because it's practically balmy compared to tomorrow's forecast, the showdown between the packers and the 49ers could be -- could be -- the coldest game in nfl history. the temperatures in green bay tonight are going to nosedive to minus 2 degrees. and the green bay packers are giving fans hot drinks tomorrow as part of a way to make them feel a little bit warmer.

here's a look at icy lambeau field. they hired people to help shovel ice out of there, i want to bring in cnn.com sports contributor. >> whoo. >> i feel the temperature in the studio beginning to plummet here. you've covered some of the coldest games that have been played. how do you prepare? what do you do? >> what you do, you stay away. don't go. it's unbelievable. you talk about lambeau field tomorrow, i mean, that's going to be, they are talking about minus 3 at kickoff and by the end of the game, minus 10, that's bad. here's the thing, people think it will give the packers the advantage, but do you know what their record is when the temperature is 6 degrees or lower at lambeau field, 3 in 4. >> temperatures are the great equalizers here. we mentioned the fans, they have the option to stay home, they don't have to go. but the players can't. how do they stay warm and is it a danger potentially. >> in the nfl history you have

the stories in the old days minnesota when they played outdoors, bud grant who was the coach of the minnesota vikings used to put the heater on his side of the sidelines and the visiting team would have to fend for themselves. you have the little tricks that take place but there's not a good way to do this and mind games to take place. i covered the 1982 freezer bowl in cincinnati, afc championship game between the chargers and the bengals and that was the coldest game, windchill factorwise minus 59 below zero in cincinnati and the actual temperature was minus 9. i bring that up because the bengal offensive linemen came out in short-sleeve shirts to try to intimidate the chargers and it worked! because the bengals won. >> right. it's been done in the military, too. with athletes, muscles tighten up, do you see greater injuries, do you see a different type of injury? >> there's no question about that. people talk about the '67 ice bowl between the packers and the cowboys at lambeau field when it was minus 13 below zero and minus 37 windchill factor.

i can't believe i know all these numbers for coldness. but dan reeves played in that game, you talk to him today, he still has a scar above his lip where he bit through his lip during that frigid day and it just still hasn't healed properly after all these years so there's repercussions playing in those temperatures. >> people don't realize it's a very different type of cold and affects you in different ways. hang around, i want you to take a look at something and we'll maybe chat a bit here. oklahoma stunning upset the sugar bowl. it didn't go over well with one die hard alabama fan, the woman had already been pulled away from a group of rowdy oklahoma fans and looked like it was all over and one of them supposedly called her a word we won't repeat and that set her off. she circled back, dove headfirst into the group and she managed to land a few kicks before security escorted her out of the stadium. so, clearly she defended her honor.

>> i thunk she got a little bit excited there. bringing new meaning to roll tide, because she's rolling through the crowd as we see, particularly if it's oklahoma fan in her sights. >> there you have it. the play by play of that particular moment. >> thank you. coming up, violence is surging in iraq and al qaeda is at the center of it once more. find out what is going on right after this. [ male announcer ] this is betsy. her long day of pick ups and drop offs begins with arthritis pain... and a choice. take up to 6 tylenol in a day or just 2 aleve for all day relief. all aboard. ♪

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the last u.s. troops left

iraq three years ago, i know that because i left with them. now the government is facing a critical battle for control in the city of fallujah. for the first time al qaeda-linked militants have taken over parts of that city. about 90 people have been killed in the last two days in fallujah and ramadi, another 40 have been wounded including children. >> reporter: sunni anti-government protest camp, violence quickly spread to nearby fallujah. fighters from the islamic state of iraq and the lavant have reportedly taken control of parts of ramadi, holding

territory for the first time. torching several police stations in the area. the group is allied with al qaeda, and it is also active in neighboring syria. aerial surveillance video from iraq's defense ministry shows what appears to be air strikes against those al qaeda-linked militants as security forces fight to retake the cities. this is a region with a history of bloodshed. american troops saw some of the heaviest fighting of the iraq war in fallujah. >> this will hearken back to previous years where ramadi and fallujah were militant strongholds and the insurgency after 2003 -- invasion. >> reporter: with growing sectarian tensions and the continuing civil war in syria, the power of al qaeda militants in the province is once again on the rise. hala gorani, cnn. >> and you can join me at 6:00 in the eastern hour that is of the "newsroom" when we speak with a foreign policy analyst about the rise of al qaeda in

iraq. that will be at 6:30 p.m. right her on cnn. you know, a quick update on a story that we've been monitoring for you in new york. a small plane had a hard landing on a highway in the bronx this afternoon. you're looking of an i-report just submitted to cnn. it happened on the major deegan expressway. wabc reports there were three people on that plane but no one was seriously hurt. very good news. we'll bring you more on this at the top of the hour. also at 5:00 p.m. world war ii veteran jailed simply because he couldn't make a repair on his home. plus, why u.s. ships may now be deploying to antarctica. "cnn newsroom" continues at the top of the hour, but right now keep it tuned for "sanjay gupta, m.d." hey there, welcome to "sg md." new year's time is a great time to hit the reset button. with your health and a lot of

other things as well. whether you need a fresh start or just a tune-up, today is an important show because we're going to talk about checklists, things that you need to bring to your doctor before you see them. and also the biggest myths around losing weight. a lot of people thinking about it this time of year. so i decided to give a roadmap to a smart and healthy year. but, first, 50 years ago this week, a bombshell landed that did more to change american health habits than anything else ever did. it was a surgeon general's report that made a firm connection between smoking and cancer and it told people bluntly that smoking is dangerous. >> make your own 30-day camel mildness test in your t-zone. >> during smoking's heyday in the 1940s and '50s, ads like they were commonplace. >> what cigarette do you smoke, doctor? in this nationwide survey of doctors, surge o