he made national news with the announcement and now ravens center matt birk is talking about his decision. good evening, i'm terry owens. as we reported birk along with several dozen other professional players are donating their brains for research. abc2 news roosevelt leftwich joins us with more on this unusual gift. >> reporter: doctors are hoping that by studying athletes' brains they will be able to find out if frequent brain injuries can lead to other problems later in life. matt birk and others are willing to give up their brains, after they are finished

using them of course. >> reporter: in his 10 years in the league number 77 matt birk has taken quite a few lumps to the body, also to the head. >> i've had a couple. three actually. >> reporter: he's talking about concussions. the old guys call it getting your bell rung, a hit so hard your brain temporarily loses function such as hearing, sight, memory, even temporary partly partlysis? ---- paralysis. remember willis mcgahee? doctors want to know if this can lead to bigger problems later in life. >> is it a risk factor for dementia or other neurologic or psychiatric syndromes as that person ages? some researchers suggest that punch drunk syndrome we just used to associate with boxers may actually exist in other collision athletes.

football and other sports. >> reporter: by looking at birk's brain and others researchers will be looking for similar patterns. they hope to be able to tell if neurological disorders can occur with age, or speed it up or caused by constant brain trauma. in particular our young people who are at risk because their brains don't heal as fast as someone a lot older >> all the more reason for young people to say something to their parents, their athletic trainer or team physician about any significant blow to the head. if they've got headache, ringing in the ears, vision is off, feel funny, feel slow, feel out of it, they need to say something and let the medical team figure out whether they've had a concussion or not. >> reporter: the nfl especially has taken steps to help protect players from head injuries, helmets have been redesigned to protect from side impacts and players can be fined or suspended from taking shots at other players' heads. suits matt birk fine. >> the decision to do the brain

donation, i mean, if it can help, if -- if stuff like this can make the game safer for future generations then why not? >> reporter: as we mentioned earlier, younger athletes can be especially vulnerable though extremely rare over the past two years, eight teens died after coming back too soon from concussions. constant headaches, ringing in the ears, other issues with the head and neck after a hard impact could be signs of a concussion and need to be evaluated by a doctor or team physician. roosevelt leftwich, abc2 news. >> thank you. help has come to struggling little league teams across america. the nick adenhart memorial fund raised more than $3,400. the minor league hagerstown suns said baseballs autographed by minor league players helped raise that money. adenhart, you will recall, was a pitcher for the los angeles angels. he died in april when an allegedly drunk driver hit his car. that driver now faces charges.

? in our nation's capital some lawmakers are calling for a federal investigation of acorn cxsgglue -- or the association of community organizations for reform now. the call comes after the release of several undercover videos including one shot here in baltimore. in each case people posing as a prostitute and pimp seek help in getting a home to operate a brothel. according to the videos acorn employees encouraged the pair to lie and commit what ultimately could amount to tax fraud. during a senate judiciary committee hearing today the fbi director robert mueller was asked if his agency is investigating the organization. >> i think the first time i heard of this incident to which you refer, was last evening. and, i, beyond that i do not know where we are, clearly given what you have said it's something in consultation with the department of justice that we would look at. >> four acorn employees have been fired. two in baltimore, two in dc. two others were suspended in

new york. tonight on "world news with charles gibson" another sting operation video has been released, this one, an acorn san diego office. jake tapper will have a full report at 6:30 on abc2. changes come with the one-year anniversary of the trooper 2 medevac crash. maryland house speaker michael busch reappointed a work group on emergency medical services. he says the system is complicated and requires continued legislative oversight because it relies on fire and rescue personnel. authorities are investigating a suspicious white powder found on an envelope at nasa headquarters in washington, dc. hazmat teams have been sent to the facility in northwest washington. we're told the immediate area was evacuated but not the entire building. there are no associated threats with the incident but crews are investigating. we're also told no injuries or illnesses have been reported. two movie star monkeys had

a stressful morning at a boston hotel. high readings of carbon monoxide disrupted their sleep and forced them to make a quick evacuation. stars of adam sandler's new movie "the zookeeper" were also among the 300 guests. good news for the guests and monkeys, the leaks were fixed and no one was hurt. a coastal flood advisory has been issued. that means there could be high water in some areas, particularly from harford county, southern baltimore county, down into anne arundel county. as well as portions of the eastern shore including the maryland beaches, a good section of delaware as well as new jersey. our forecast for this evening -- not that rough here in the baltimore area. mostly cloudy, a few sprinkles, temperatures will hang around 70 degrees. for the next couple of hours, but scattered showers are going to be in our weather picture for the next 36 hours as well as some cooler temperatures. complete forecast coming up. just a couple of minutes. for a look at tonight's top

stories -- baltimore's columbus day and thanksgiving day parades will not go on this year. they have been cancelled. mayor sheila dixon says it's a financial issue. however, the christmas parade that runs through hamden will take place. that parade attracts thousands of people a year. the mayor says it's much too popular to pull the plug on that one. two baltimore city police officers are on routine administrative leave tonight after shooting and killing a man who stabbed an undercover officer in the back. it happened as the officers were making a drug arrest on orleans street and kenwood avenue. the bulletproof vest protected the officer. the suspect later died at the hospital. connecticut's chief medical examiner says yale graduate student annie le died from asphyxiation. but he is not going into more detail.

le's body was found sunday hidden in a wall in her lab building. investigators questioned this man, raymond clark and have taken dna samples from him. he's since been released. clark and his fiancee were both animal research technicians in the lab where le worked. we expect tonight's hot shower to leave us clean and refreshed but a new study says danger could be lurking in that shower. actually, it's in the showerhead. in the form of bacteria. and hurricane ivan hit five years ago but for some storm victims it still seems like yesterday. first, we'll take you outside and check the weather in bel air. back in a second. crest whitestrips has created a strip so revolutionary...

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stocks jumped on wall street today. the dow topped 100 points. the nasdaq up 30. s & p over 16. maryland has been fighting to clean up the chesapeake bay for 30 years now. but today a new report says the bay is still dangerously sick and watermen are paying the price. a group called environment maryland says fisheries collapsed and hundreds of watermen lost their jobs. in the past four to five years the number of maryland watermen has dropped from 10,000 to 6,000 and most of those are part time jobs.

>> we've had a bay clean-up program going on for 30 years. and we're in worse shape now than we were 30 years ago. the reason i think that is, is that we only attacked some of the problems and not all the problems at the same time. >> larry sims of the watermen's association also called on congress and the epa to commit to a strategy that will restore the bay's culture and community of watermen. credit card companies are encouraging news from gm now. the auto giant once again putting out the help wanted sign and dc now might also make you think da vinci code. a new novel based on secrets, intrigue and hidden symbols in the middle of the nation's capital.

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trying to boost chicago's chances of hosting the 2016 summer olympic games. they held an event at the white house today where they honored some of the top olympians and paralimpans. chicago competing against madrid, rio de janeiro and tokyo to host the games. >> chicago is ready, the american people are ready. we want these games. >> i cannot think of a better city to host the 2016 games than my hometown. >> the international olympic committee will vote on the host city next month in denmark. first lady michelle obama, a chicago native, will represent america at that meeting. secrets, intrigue and hidden symbols in the middle of the nation's capital. all in the newest novel from the author of "the da vinci code." the book built around the premise there may be a secret code hidden among the famous buildings of washington. here's david wright. >> reporter: the opening scene of dan brown's new novel takes place inside the imposing headquarters of the scottish

rite free masons. >> this is called the temple room. >> reporter: in this oninate room, their holy of holies, as this secret as this ancient fraternity is of their symbols the masons take pride in their history. george washington was a member, the first of 14 presidents to belong as long as countless other influential men. >> seven of the supreme court justices were free masons that year. >> wow. >> reporter: making them perfect fodder for an author obsessed by secret symbols and powerful conspiracies. >> now, dan brown, author of "the da vinci code" uncovers the most shocking secret of all, right in washington, dc. >> reporter: the masons admit they are a little anxious about getting the dan brown treatment. >> we don't know whether to batten down the hatches or open the doors and say come on in. >> reporter: even before the book came out entrepreneurs have been angling to cash in. >> we think there's going to be a boom in tourism from people curious about masonic influence

in america. >> warren getler, author, planning a dan brown walking tour. >> this is ground zero. >> reporter: the washington monument whose granite stones include cryptic markings made by masons. >> all these famous landmarks in washington are really a secret code? >> there's a geometric code, a masonic code in the layout of washington, dc. >> reporter: the masons insist it's just an urban legend. there is no such secret code. >> sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. >> reporter: but for fans of the best-selling author of our time it won't make it any less intriguing. david wright, abc news, washington. five years ago hurricane ivan rode ashore near pensacola, florida, as a category 3 storm. it destroyed thousands of homes and businesses leaving people homeless and without jobs. the storm caused billions in damage and some homes still haven't been repaired. hard to believe it's been five years. >> hard to believe it's been

five years and that we've had such a quiet hurricane season. i mean, we've had some storms but nothing of any real significance around the region. we've got showers on tap for the next couple of days but nothing brewing in the tropics. the forecast coming up in a second. let's look outside now. our shot from the harbor cam, overlooking the national aquarium. on to federal hill where the flag is getting a nice little workout from an easterly breeze. our temperature at bwi marshall 72 degrees. 73% humidity. winds from the northeast at 15, and pressure rising 30.11. our satellite picture, a few light scattered sprinkles moved through, then throughout the day, morning sunshine, clouds parted. then came back in. now we've got scattered showers, mostly to the north but the maturity of the shower activity to the south of us. just to the southeast of richmond. going over towards norfolk, getting heavy showers and even thunderstorm activity. the southeast pretty involved in some scattered showers now.

not torrential downpours but scattered showers. again, it's all because of a frontal system that is going to become stationery right through this region, a little area of low pressure will move along that frontal system and of course surround areas of low pressure, we always talk about it. counterclockwise circulation of air and that is dragging in the moist air from the atlantic, causing that shower activity. that is why the national weather service did, we talked about it at the beginning of the show, issue a coastal flood advisory, just because of the strong winds on shore and also because of potentially heavy rainfall along the eastern seaboard. just want people living in those areas to kind of, just kind of watch out. even along the bay, you could see extremely high tides. in the baltimore area through anne arundel county and also into southern maryland. right now, around the baltimore area, no precipitation showing up but we're seeing some showers over here in the northern portions of delaware. also in the sections of cecil county. there was one little shower out here in portions of howard county but that kind of just fell apart.

as we go through the next 24 to 36 hours we'll see scattered showers. right now in towson, 66 degrees. 68 in hanover. eldersburg 68. 64 westminster. havre de grace now moved down to 67. still 70 annapolis. 71 in the chestertown area. you can see the cooler temperatures back in the front making their way through the maryland area. tonight, as a frontal system comes through, got a chance for scattered showers across the region. and during the day tomorrow also a chance for scattered showers on and off. no torrential downpours. that is all going to be kind of -- held out to the west of us in portions of the ohio valley but across our region things looking pretty good. the weekend right now looking ok. overnight, mostly cloudy, a few scattered showers, we'll see an overnight low of 63. tomorrow there's going to be a cloudy day with scattered showers, not going to rain everywhere all the time but will be around, a high of 67 degrees. the extended outlook, things start to clear up friday with a high of 76. 72 and sunshine saturday. 72 and partly cloudy on sunday.

monday looking pretty good. chance of showers tuesday and wednesday. back at 6:00 with more on the weather. it used to be the oath danger in the shower was slipping on the soap. but a new study says that showerheads carry bacteria that could be harmful if your immune system isn't in good shape. crystal phillips explains. >> reporter: showers are supposed to washington away the dirt and bacteria but recent studies show if you're not careful tiny microbes can meet you in the shower. >> the way the showermetically works, it's bringing the water and the aerosol could actually bring organisms into your respiratory system. >> reporter: researchers say those with normal immune systems have little to fear but if you're sick it could create a serious problem. >> sometimes older people and people that have a chronic illness, that have the problems. >> reporter: studies show that bacteria tends to build up in the showerhead. >> microbacterium complex can

be found in sputum. people can come in contact with it through the showerhead. >> reporter: the best way to cut down risk, use all metal showerheads, clean your showerhead with diluted bleach. >> if you dilute it with a large amount of water it will kill spores and lots of viruses and things like that. >> reporter: another way to cut down your risk is to change your showerhead filters as often as possible. and take more baths than showers. >> that was crystal phillips reporting. the study was done by researchers at the university of colorado. need a job? general motors may be hiring again. the company underestimated demand for a new slate of products that hit the market after it filed for bankruptcy in june. now gm says that in order to increase production they may need to add more workers to short-staffed factories. the start for the new models is a bright spot for the auto industry but many analysts are worried auto sales will return

to low levels after the "cash for clunkers" program. we're working to help you through these tough economic times. on our web site today, why now may be a good day to book your holiday travel. plus tips to help you cut cable bills. looking for work? some job hunting advice for those who haven't looked for work in many years. log on to our web site, abc2news.com and click on "financial survival guide." here's a look at what we have coming up tonight on abc2 news at 6:00. hundreds of university of maryland college park students came up with flu-like symptoms. what the university is doing to stop a probable swine flu outbreak from spreading. a baltimore county school celebrates a huge milestone. how st. paul school for girls marked its 50th anniversary. a preview of what is ahead on world news at 6:30. >> coming up on "world news," what is in the latest version of a health care reform bill. a reporter goes with police in

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credit card companies are running out of time to hook your kids on plastic. tonight at 11:00 we'll explain the new rules that change the way these companies can recruit college students on campuses. some believe that means credit card companies will make a stronger push. so-called affinity cards are now big business, giving credit card companies access to potential cardholders some believe are not ready for the responsibility. >> it's a situation where the college or school becomes a

predator. >> you're a target, basically for college students. you're straight out of high school, you don't know no better. it's free. >> tonight at 11:00, we'll break down the new rules and give you the scoop on what you need to tell your child so they don't leave college with a dediplomma and truck load of truck. coming up at 6:00, maryland's wine trail. the h1n1 virus hits hard at the university of maryland college park. where an outbreak finds hundreds of students infected. good evening, i'm marybeth marsden. as abc2 news jeff hager reports, with the vaccine still in the works the university is taking a number of steps to keep the so-called swine flu virus from spreading throughout campus. >> reporter: kathryn mcdonald came to the university health center with an injured foot but the freshman from mount airy says she fears leaving here with