Instant opinion. The BusinessWeek online poll can be found at the Web site indicated in the “Notes and Data Sources,” on page 34. The latest question appears on the screen, and visitors to the site can simply click buttons to vote.

On March 29, 2007, the question was “Do you think Google is too powerful?” In all, 1336 (35.9%) said “Yes,” 2051 (55.1%) said “No,” and 335 (9.0%) said “I’m not sure.”

(a) What is the sample size for this poll?

(b) At the Web site, BusinessWeek includes the following statement about its online poll. “Note: These are surveys, not scientific polls.” Explain why the poll may give unreliable information.

(c) Just above the poll question was the following statement: “Google’s accelerating lead in search and its moves into software and traditional advertising are sparking a backlash among rivals.” How might this statement affect the poll results?