Industry uses big data to determine the next billboard hit. But is whats good for business, bad for music . The vast majority of people what they want from pop culture is comfort food. They want to be relaxed. They want to turn off their brains. The side of effect of big data in the Music Industry has been i think to make the product more repetitious. Woodruff plus, montana is home to great fishing, but Illegal Dumping of nonnative fish is threatening the fragile ecosystem, even as it baits the lucrative sports fishing tourist. Those are some of the stories were covering on tonights pbs newshour. Major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by moving our economy for 160 years. Bnsf, the engine that connects us. Thanks for my first car. Thanks for giving me your smile, your motivation, and your belief that loved ones always come first. We wouldnt be where we are if it were not for the people that helped get us here. Dont forget to thank those who helped you to take charge of your future and got you where you are today. The boss of your life. The chief life officer. Lincoln financial. Youre in charge. Supported by the john d. And catherine t. Macarthur foundation. Committed to building a more just, verdant and peaceful world. More information at macfound. Org and with the ongoing support of these institutions and. This program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. And by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. Woodruff americans at home and abroad celebrated this thanksgiving holiday. The annual macys thanksgiving day parade passed through the streets of manhattan. Other cities across the country hosted their own festive processions. Meanwhile, u. S. Forces stationed in afghanistan enjoyed a feast with turkey and all the trimmings even as attacks on British Forces rocked other parts of the capital city. The bulk of u. S. Combat troops are preparing to leave the country by years end. You know any thanksgiving that you are on gods green earth is a good thanksgiving to celebrate. I couldnt have found any better people to celebrate it with here. Obviously, i would rather be with a little bit more good looking of a person, but my wife cant be here unfortunately and i could not be home, so this is a good replacement and i am not complaining at all. Woodruff but back in the northeastern u. S. , many were forced to celebrate this thanksgiving in the dark. Hundreds of thousands of people were still without power after the first major snowstorm of the season. Ferguson, missouri seemed to take a pause from protesting to observe thanksgiving, but elsewhere around the country there were vocal demonstrations about the grand jurys decision earlier in the week not to convict officer Darren Wilson for killing 18yearold Michael Brown. No justice no peace, no racist police. Chants filled the air as the protesters made their way towards new york citys macys thanksgiving day parade this morning. Their goal disrupt the event and bring attention to the grand jury decision to indict the Police Officer who shot and killed 18yearold Michael Brown in august. But police pushed back, and eventually, at least seven people were taken away in handcuffs. And in ferguson, missouri this morning, residents hoped a thanksgiving day calm would last. I think a lot of people have seen a lot of the destruction and the rough parts of this week and the past few months. But, theres been a lot of people out here really centered on love and peace and community. Woodruff streets were noticeably quieter last evening than in recent days, in part because of winter weather. Some honked car horns during a caravan protest, while others gathered for a vigil at a makeshift memorial for Michael Brown. Meanwhile, scattered protests continued around the nation overnight. In los angeles, hundreds of demonstrators crisscrossed downtown streets overnight, blocking traffic and disrupting many. I dont know what point theyre proving, i think theyre more wasting their own time and our time. Woodruff after more than five hours, Police Declared the assembly unlawful. Theyre running in front of traffic, and they have no idea whats going on and its a very dangerous situation both for these demonstrators as well as the motorists. Woodruff at least 145 protesters were taken into custody for refusing to disperse. Apparently im getting arrested for walking down the street and voicing my frustration with our justice system. Woodruff but in oakland, california, demonstrations turned destructive once again. Woodruff later on in the program, well have more about how teachers, parents and students are dealing with the Difficult Conversations raised by the events in ferguson. 600 migrants fleeing violence in syria and iraq made it to shore on the greek island of crete today. Theyd been adrift on a crippled freighter in international waters, after it lost engine power on tuesday. Many of the migrants said they were from syria and iraq and were running from Islamic State militants. Greek officials said most on board the ship were in good health and will receive refugee status. translated they have been identified by police as being syrians. They are refugees, and based on the regulations of the World Health Organization and the united nations. They are not under arrest, they are free. They will be able to go where they want. Woodruff more than 99 of syrians who reach greece will eventually gain refugee status. This was one of the largest single crossings of its kind in recent years. Britain gave more powers to scotland today, two months after voters narrowly defeated an effort to split from britain and seek total independence. Todays political deal gives scotland the power to set income tax rates, influence welfare spending and decide how the Scottish Parliament is run. Lord smith of kelvin led the effort to reach the compromise this gives the parliament more tools to pursue its own vision, goals and objectives whatever they might be at any particular time. The recommendations set out in the agreement will result in the biggest transfer of power to the Scottish Parliament since its establishment. Woodruff politicians from scotlands proindependence administration welcomed the new powers but said they dont go far enough. Many voices in civic scotland demanded the devolution of the welfare system, the minimum wage and control over equalities to fulfil the promise of substantial new powers that were so pivotal in the outcome of the referendum. I regret that these powers have not been delivered. Woodruff the proposals will be introduced as legislation in the u. K. Parliament in january. Comedian bill cosby gave an exclusive interview refuting sex assault allegations to a tabloid nine years ago in exchange for spiking another accusers story. Court documents from cosbys 2005 deposition were unsealed yesterday in philadelphia. He made the arrangement with the National Enquirer during an ongoing lawsuit with a canadian woman. He said he feared the public would believe her if another accusation came to light. Cosby has refused to discuss allegations of Sexual Assault raised by more than a dozen women in recent weeks. The cricket world mourned the loss of one its Young Players today. Australian cricketer Phillip Hughes died after being hit on the head by a cricket ball during a match two days ago. He was wearing a helmet but the ball slipped through a small gap between his shoulder and the base of the hat. Doctors said his injury was a freakish accident. Hughes was 25yearsold. Bestselling British Crime writer p. D. James died today at her home in oxford, england. James was the author of 20 novels, including the children of men, death comes to pemberley, and the murder room. More than a dozen of her works featured one of her most beloved characters, Scotland YardDetective Adam dalgliesh. Many of her bestsellers have also been adapted for film or television in britain and the u. S. P. D. James was 94yearsold. Still to come on the newshour suicide bomb attacks rock kabul, afghanistan. Promising results from early trials of an ebola vaccine. How to explain whats happened in ferguson, missouri to young people. How the Music Industry uses big data to predict the next billboard hit. A pitch to break partisan gridlock with math and reason. And, the hunt for those responsible for Invasive Species being dumped in montanas rivers and lakes. Woodruff the taliban carried out a series of attacks in the Afghan Capital of kabul today. The Insurgent Group has stepped up violence in recent weeks, as the u. S. Prepares to draw down its military presence there. It started with a taliban suicide bombing against a British Embassy vehicle, killing five, including a british national. More than thirty people were hurt. translated people are wounded, even children, someones eye was wounded, another ear was missing. Wounded victims were everywhere. Woodruff then, later in the evening, another explosion. This one targeted the headquarters of an American Relief agency. It was followed by more than an hour of heavy gunfire echoing through the usually quiet Diplomatic Quarter. No one was killed in this second round of fighting, but a third attack, with reports of gunfire and explosions continued late today. All this caps a violent week in afghanistan. On monday, two american soldiers were killed when their convoy was bombed by the taliban. On sunday, a suicide bomber targeted Afghan Police officials at a volleyball tournament in eastern afghanistan. 61 were killed, mostly civilians. The attacks come as the future u. S. Military role in afghanistan becomes clearer. Also on sunday, the parliament approved an agreement with the u. S. And nato, agreeing that 12,000 foreign soldiers could stay in the country through next year. Parliament member Shukria Barekzai voted for the deal. I believe this is very important for the future of afghanistan. If i want my kids and millions of other children to live in prosperity, we need a Strong Partnership between afghanistan and the u. S. Last week the New York Times reported that the new afghan government, led by ashraf ghani, will allow u. S. Special forces to assist Afghan Security forces in carrying out controversial nighttime raids. Because of the high number of civilian casualties during such missions in the past, ghanis predeccesor, hamid karzai, had banned them. As their mission continues, u. S. Soldiers in afghanistan were able to take part in thanksgiving day celebrations. I am definitely going to try and be home next year for thanksgiving. Woodruff it is the 14th thanksgiving that u. S. Soldiers have marked in afghanistan. For more on todays attacks and other developments we turn to New York Times correspondent rod nordland in kabul. I spoke to him a short while ago by skype. Rod nordland, welcome. So its been a day of attacks by the taliban, the latest in a series of attacks that they have been making. Thats right. We had four attacks altogether today. Most were pretty minor. One was quite serious, killed five people including a british body guard, i think working for the British Embassy. And the frequency, although most werent very successful, the frequency of the attacks is something we havent seen in kabul before for quite a long time. Woodruff how unusual for them to be going after the Diplomatic Quarter in kabul . Pretty unusual. This is a pretty heavily unguarded area. In the beginning of the year, there were horrendous attacks, one in a restaurant a couple blocks away from todays attack and killed 21 people, many foreign aid work withers and diplomats. Then another attack on the same street in which a journalist was assassinated. But it is probably the most heavily guarded part of the city full of diplomats, journalists, aide groups and so on. So its quite worrisome. It took a long time to subdue it. It went on pretty much for five hours, three attackers, before they finally caught the last one just about an hour ago, actually. Woodruff rod, we reported on the decision by the new president , president ghani, to permit u. S. Special forces to work with the Afghan Forces in nighttime raids. How significant a move into . How significant a move is that . I think its very significant. It changes a couple of years of contention between the United States and its allies. President karzai was opposed to it. A lot of the attacks took place long after he ordered them to stop taking place, and its a huge bone of contention between the two countries. The taliban are very concerned about it. According to the americans, its the most effective weapon they have against taliban leadership, hunting them down in their homes at night when theyre most vulnerable. It also has led to some really serious accidents and mishaps that have had a lot of blowback publicly. Karzai responded to that and president ghani seems to be more concerned about restoring a tool thats very effective. Woodruff and, rod, we reported in the last few days about the decision of the Obama Administration to have a larger number of u. S. Troops in afghanistan into 2015. How much difference is that expected to make . Theres still pretty small numbers were talking about. Still nobody thinks its going to be more than 12,500, including european and n. A. T. O. Troops. 9,800 americans. Even if it bumps up a little bit from that, its still a small amount compared to two years ago when there were 100,000 nerns and 140,000 total n. A. T. O. Woodruff i dont know how often youre able to spend time with troops, but how do you read their morale these days . Do you think theyre accomplishing what they were sent there to accomplish . I think theres a lot of confusion, and, you know, i think a lot of people a few months ago, we were really and even now to some extent, really in the kind of lets get out of here and put this behind us mode, and we steel feel a lot of that. Although a lot of the troops that are here now will be gone by the end of the year and rapidly drawing it down, but there are some whose tours have just begin and will be going into next year and i think theres a feeling that this is really kind of americas forgotten war. I feel that way as a journalist that its kind of the forgotten war, even though were here covering it. People back home are not really interested anymore. We do it as a duty to keep people informed, but i dont feel this great, overwhelming interest and concern about it that we used to have. Well, i hear what youre saying and on a day when we with turn to the story because of the taliban attacks in kabul, thats what caught everyones attention, and unfortunately its bad any way, but on thanksgiving day, it certainly gets our attention. Rod nordland reporting for us from kabul, afghanistan. Rod, we thank you. Pleasure. Woodruff now to promising news in the search for an ebola vaccine. Researchers from the National Institutes of health and the Pharmaceutical Company glaxosmithkline report that an experimental vaccine has been shown to be safe and, for the first time, to be successful in stimulating an immune response against ebola. The trial involved 20 Healthy Volunteers in bethesda, maryland. It was conducted by the National Institute of allergy and Infectious Diseases at n. I. H. And its director, dr. Anthony fauci, joins me now. Welcome, dr. Anthony fauci. Thank you. Good to be with you. Woodruff on this thanksgiving day, we appreciate your coming in. So only 20 people involved in this study. Its only been underway a lit morning tha two months. How is it possible to know already that it may be successful. When we say successful, we mean weve answered successfully two questions that a Phase One Early trial like this asks. A, is it safe . And b, does it induce the kind of response in volunteers that you predict would be protective . The answer is yes. It was safe in the sense of really no prohibitive adverse events among 20 volunteers, and when we measured the response in them, it was commensurate with the good response wes saw in the animal model that actually protected the animal from challenge. The proof of the pudding now is to find out if, in reality, it protects. The first phases are successful and thats where we are now. Woodruff we know theres no ebola in this so its not dangerous in that regard. Right. Woodruff how does it work . Hat happens is you take the gene of one particular protein of ebola, a glyco protein, and you stick it in a vaccine and give it to a person and the body gives the response to the protein. So the whole ebola virus is not in the vaccine so theres no chance of a danger of the vaccine giving any ebola. What you want it to do is make a good response against a part of ebola that would then protect you if you were exposed to ebola. Woodruff i read this involves a high dose of ebola. The ebola vaccine. How much does that comple wait complicate what youre trying to do . Not a lot. What it means is that the company will have to make more for the number of people you will ultimately vaccinate. For example, the next phase which is planned to start sometime in mid january in west africa to answer the bottom line question does it work, that will involve thousands of people, so youre going to have the make a lot youre going to have to make a lot of product. It would be nice to have a low dos