A. Banswagon
B. Leak
C. Census
D. Watchdog
2007-09-04 07:32:20 · 5 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Engineering
C.......Census
A trial balloon is information sent out in order to observe the reaction of an audience. It can be used by companies sending out press releases to judge reaction by customers, or it can be used by politicians who deliberately leak information on a policy change under consideration. In politics trial balloons often take the form of an intentional news leak to assess public opinion.
For instance, a company might announce they are going to release a new computer program in a year, and then read the press coverage for hints on whether or not the product will have appeal in the marketplace. If the coverage is favourable the money will be spent on development, but if not the project can be cancelled before using up resources. A trial balloon under the company's own name is somewhat risky; if too many are "floated" the company risks becoming known as the company that cried wolf, and can find itself being ignored completely. In addition, the company can find that the product being planned is unworkable, leading to the phenomenon of vaporware.
One concrete example was Boeing's announcement of several new airliner designs in the wake of the Airbus A380 entering development. First they offered a similar-sized large aircraft, but with the Airbus A380 beating them to production by at least two years, there was apparently little market left for Boeing. They then announced that they had cancelled their large airliner planes and announced the Sonic Cruiser design, and found much the same reception. This led to the Boeing 787 Dreamliner as yet another offering looking for a market, one that appears to have found interested customers.
2007-09-04 10:09:02 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Actually, no idiot comes up with "trail balloon," the expression is "TRIAL balloon." It makes sense: something tried out, sent into the air ahead of time, to see how something will fly.
2007-09-04 15:33:30 · answer #2 · answered by pegminer 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
"trail balloon"
What idiot comes up with these silly expressions
We all know what a balloon is
We all know what a trail is
the two do NOT go together
2007-09-04 14:56:25 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
B. Leak
It can't be A or D. It may be C, but that is a formal event, not a 'trial', so I choose B.
.
2007-09-04 14:41:59 · answer #4 · answered by tlbs101 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I agree. the answer is B
2007-09-04 14:50:27 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋