welcome to assignment 7. today on our program. >> they have an incentive to save your home from foreclosure. >> there are two types of rafters, those that have never swam and those that will. >> a life water adventure, what the record snow melt means.

stepping out of classroom an east bay university offers students a chance to explore the world. >> came pair son shopping for new cars is about to get easier. they have redesigned fuel economy labels that will be displayed on all new cars. heather ishimaru has the details. >> reporter: soaring priess gasoline prices provide a backdrop for fuel economy impact label. current labels show fuel economy and environmental rating for the car they are on. now, they will compare it against an average and simplified comparisons against the mean different classes. gas, hybrids, electric. so for instance this gas guzzler 11 miles per gallon, you spend $14,000 more in fuel in five years over an average vehicle. this all electric vehicle, fuel savings of 9 everybody's $600.

it's all based on national averages but extremely useful for comparison sake. >> a lost discussion, people thought we should have a grade, but what we came out with is a common sense approach that moves us in the right direction towards more efficiency. palo alto based tesla motors preavs letters great. it has sold electric roadsters but they want to sell more at model sedan. tesla helped develop the labors. they will be required on 2013 models hitting show rooms or voluntarily before then. heather ishimaru, "abc 7 news." homeowners facing foreclosure around the country are holding out hope of getting loans modified. getting that modification is no easy task. michael finney is here to

explain why. >> we first met gary robinson when he applied for a home loan modification two years ago. the antioch father of two is still waiting to get one. >> you don't know where you are going to end up or plan to move. >> lilian applied for a modification two years ago and like gary, the stress is taking its toll. >> this is a burden that i carry every day on my back, every day all the paperwork. >> the more time passes for both of them, the more they get into debt. gary said his mortgaged $690,000 to $800,000 day. lilian's shot up from $3562,000 to $620,000. katrina is senior housing counselor with a community housing development corporation.

>> longer it takes for them to review your file and come up with a decision the more arrearages you are occurring. >> a recent study from a nonprofit law center concluded that loan services had little snest to work out modification. >> if a modification. all the staffing cost to go into the modifying loan does not get reimbursed. >> she also says the fees can add up quickly. they have been working for a modification for nearly two years. >> it bothers me on so many levels that the banks make it on the way up, on the way down. they get covered in every why which way. fees the attorneys' fees. property inspection fees. >> legal fees will cost her almost $2,000 but the mortgage bankers association says in many cases those fees are justified.

>> attorneys' fees, recording fees, collection fees, they have to offset the costs associated with had em. >> a federal lawsuit accused country wide home loans of charge businesses to the foreclosure process and then marking up the price of the services, often by 100% or more. the case settled for $108 million. the study found the more people up the more services get paid. >> its large incentive to keep lines in the pool so they can keep getting money but often to keep the balances high. >> but a trade organization says that is not true. >> services are paid to perform a loan. when a loan is not performing, in other words, when on person is delinquent they are not paid. at the end of the day, there is no economic argument to say that if a servicer or bank es best

interest to have a default. >> lilian is facing a foreclosure sale date of june 18th. she wants to continue to raise her children there. >> it's important to raise my kids under one roof. >> gary has reapplied for a modification four different times. >> when you sit down and all the fees that you incur, you come think whether it was a good thing. >> but ultimately he hopes to get the news lynette got. she received a permanent modification last month. >> he. >> i feel like i was able to gather my friends and neighbors and work companions to help me fight and i didn't stop. >> delayed organization we

talked with 4 million permanent modifications have been granted since 2007. realty track says there has been 3500,000 for closures during that same period. >> new way to communicate with each other. how to revolutionize how we bank to simplify it. >> when they opened in the district in december, the owner knew she needed to accept credit cards if her business was to grow. she found it with one inch square decides, a tiny credit card reader, transactions started rolling in. >> it makes it people easily to sign the dominant form of payment which is plastic cards.

>> he is an artist that find afford be a ways to accept he was talking on the phone and he realized the insert was in his hand. within three weeks they came up with square. since it debuted they have processed millions of dollars a week in transactions and has attracted more than 100,000 new use ears day partly because it's so easy to use. >> you plug in the square reader and it recognizes it and charges five dollars, slice it through the reader. on this screen i sign my name, it offers me a receipt and e-mail and it's done. >> square works with iphone, ipad and android. unlike the big credit card processing companies it doesn't charge service fees. credit card reader is free in exchange the company takes 2.75%

of each transaction and deposits the rest in your bank account. >> pay pal charges up 2.9% transaction and some banks charge as much as 15%. numbers like those make square enticing. katherine hughs turned a family recipe into coffee into a business and they built a gourmet business from the ground up selling their goods online. >> we were at events and having to manually put in numbers. >> with square, credit cards are processed immediately and don't worry, there is no paper trail of credit card numbers. >> before we were writing their credit card numbers down on a piece of paper. >> it makes it clear that all transactions is protected by credit card agreement and as an added feature they have a photo feature. you can snap a photo as proof of

purchase. >> it's a great conversation piece and it makes it easier. >> a musical tradition. [ "taps" playing ] >> somber song that means so much to those that serve their country and the efforts to keep the traditio [ man ] did we get anything good? sweetie i think you need a little extra fiber in your diet. fiber makes me sad. oh common. i dare you to taste one hint of ber in fiber one. oh, i'd be able to tell. why don't i just eat this bag? and how can you talk to me about fiber you enjoy that. i am. [ male announcer ] fiber beyond recognition. ber one.

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that can help lower cholesterol and who ordered the yummy cereal? yummy. that's yours. lower cholesterol. lower cholesterol. i'm yummy. lower cholesterol. i got that wrong didn't i? [ male announcer ] want great taste? honey nut cheerios. want whole grain oats that can help lower cholesterol? honey nut cheerios. it's a win win. good? [ crunching, sipping ] be happy. be healthy. can i try yours? welcome back, one song in particular is played again and again at national cemeteries across the land. wayne freedman reports it's been a long tradition. >> serviced memorial day at sacramento national cemetery. a giant flag presides over a steady procession of men young and old. >> he passed away 67th

anniversary, bless his heart. he wait until that day. >> judge buying the turnout, master sergeant lived a very good life. when it ended our nation gave him a fine funeral. [ gun shots ] >> 21 guns and then in contrast sergeant eric siler. [ "taps" playing ] >> when you think about it, it's 25 notes that bring people to nears second. >> the tradition of taps goes back to the british empire, a tune back then and now it means the same. the day is done. ♪ >> people they have done it

biblical times. when to charge and when to reteet. taps said it was safe and secure to sleep. about tha was different era. >> musicians was more prolific in culture. infantry had their own buglers. now. >> now they are lucky to get a real buying her at all. >> the sergeant considers that to be a shame. >> with playing taps live you keep it. >> if you can't render taps as it's meant to be rendered. [ "taps" playing ] >> every family deserves the sa, medal of honor recipients to a general to a private. [ "taps" playing ]

>> the sergeant is mates he has played taps 500 times and never the same. with so many world war ii veterans dying that is what he does up and down the state. >> it is a beautiful song. >> 25 notes and 15 seconds and for the friends and family of master sergeant george miller precious. >> he would have loved it. >> from the sacramento national cemetery, wayne freedman, "abc 7 news" still ahead... it's being called the best white water season in years. great conditions could mean a more dangerous died. >> i wanted to see it. >> a local college with an extensive travel i tin ear where students can see

welcome back. heavy snow in the high sierra, rafters can expect the most exciting rafting seasons in decades. laura anthony takes us a thrilling ride on the merced river. >> they are rafting the merced river for nearly ten years and he has never seen it like this this early in the season. >> there are two types of rafters, those that swam and those that will. >> thanks to record snow pack in the sierra, all rivers are running high this spring. the season is just beginning. >> coming up is road rash. >> this is 11 mile rafting. they charge up to $115 for the half day trip and rafters should

be good swimmers. >> this is dump truck, and the guy let's everybody fall out except for himself. >> this is the kind of water that occasionally causes a problem in the boats. >> flying out was fun and scary at the same time but i'm glad i'm back in the boat now. >> it was a fun time. >> the water is already running high and fast and there is so much snow in the sierra there is more yet to come. >> keep it going! >> with the excitement the season brings there is need for additional safety precautions,

until the water korms calms a better young children can't go along for the ride and wet south is waited to go. >> it's amazing what students can take. >> keep it going. nice wave coming up. >> its joy ride on the rivers. >> on the merced, laura anthony, "abc 7 news." >> this story, colleges are supposed to offer students experiences that stay with them at life. that is with st. mary's college in moraga that has lifetime challenges. >> as a student stepping on the st. mary's campus means stepping out of your comforted zone. in january, 13 students and two

teachers spent nearly a month in 27 cities in columbia to gain a better understanding of the south american country. this is video shot by the students. >> when you think of colombia, i wanted to see the real kilometer with a through my own ideas. >> they spent an entire semester focusing on the ecology and development and the condition of women leaving out the drug trafficking and the violence. >> we saw everything except that. we saw a lot of exciting things. >> if you are not given all the information you can't change. >> st. mary's college is gaining notoriety, the jan is short for january. during the one month students are deeplymorse had to a

culture. there are 13 trips to different countries er year. >> it's an opportunity to step outside of our boundaries and explore anything that we want to explore, really anything. >> what they learn abroad stay west side them long after they return. >> students who can't afford to travel usually apply for financial aid or are given a scholarship. >> that is the goal in the coming years, every student who comes here will have the opportunity to travel at least once. >> st. mary's also offers students a chance to take part in their christian internship. to go to cities in need likes new orleans, tanzania and haiti. shortly after the earthquake. >> it was really something, in haiti and we've been in places with great poverty and great

need before but in haiti what we found there wasn't any structure for anyone to fall back on. >> a senior who spent time tutoring boys in mexico city. most came from broken homes. >> i really enjoyed getting to meet a lot of young minds and having an effect and their understanding of the need of an education. >> a professor leads these groups. in haiti they worked to improve water and sanitary conditions. each student posted a blog letting his or her community and parents know what they were doing. >> what happens for most students they come back and they change everything. they change the way they live their own personal lives and the stuff they accumulate light and priorities they hold. a lot of them change their major. >> they say this kind of work allows them to see a different part of themselves.

lyanne melendez, "abc 7 news." >> still ahead, another first from the founder of grateful dead. how bob weir rigged an ipad to change the acoustics o o o hey! you want that? you want a warm, super-delicious strawberry toaster strudel yeah but now i have nothing to eat sureou do. hey! you can have the pop tart! pillsbury toaster strudel. the one kids want to eat with totino's pizza rolls. big pizza taste in a bite size roll that my kids can't resist. plus i get two box tops for their school. totino's pizza rolls. the pizza way to snack.

one of founders of the grateful dead has expanded into new technology. don sanchez takes us inside bob weir's home studio. ♪ ♪ >> this is a musical and video first. a live performance of hd and audio from studios a state of the art performance a show on the internet. the creation of bob weir. >> i go back to give the ultimate play pen for a musician. ♪ ♪ >> one of founders of the

grateful dead have created this studio where bands can rehearse and perform. >> the future is here, we can do it in the living room. we can bring a more intimate experience than anyplace else. >> it's a revolutionary technology changes the accuse particulars of the room. >> the room actually sounds like this. >> wow! that is dead. >> he controls it on the ipad. we'll go to a cathedral. by contrast. >> invaluable when you are creating a piece of music. and who shows up but sammy hagar shows up. >> the microphones what they hear in the room and put it back up. >> the results are astonishing. >> can it be better than this? >> no. >> there will be more shows that will be posted on tri studios

website. >> what can you make this better? >> no six months this will be old hand. >> the performances will be pay-per-view but it raises the concept and he is touring this summer. >> world is for this. the which knowledge is what are you going to do it. >> it looks like he found an answer. >> if you want more information on the stories on our program today, go to our website at abc7news.com and look under ther assignment 7. that is all for this edition of assignment 7. i'm kristen sze, i hope you enjoyed the program. we'll see you back here next we'll see you back here next >> irene blows through new york and has left damage behind.

emergency crews are called to rescue one of their own. join us