A student wants to avoid rote memorization. After reading that a sea star and a chordate are discussed together in a phylogeny lecture even though one is an invertebrate., the correct concept is: (295)

Correct Answer: A

deuterostome development

Echinoderms and chordates are deuterostomes. Their embryological characters link them despite very different adult body forms. This question is designed as a comparison-based item to reduce thin-content style repetition and improve conceptual depth.