A hydrostatic skeleton has no bones or cartilage.

Question

Answer the following statement true (T) or false (F)

Answer 1

True

Clarify Question

• What is the key concept addressed by the question?
   o The question is asking whether a hydrostatic skeleton has bones or cartilage.
• What type of thinking is required?
   o The question requires you to apply your understanding of hydrostatic skeletons to determine whether they would contain bones or cartilage .
• What key words does the question contain and what do they mean?
   o Hydrostatic skeleton: a fluid-filled body cavity surrounded by muscles that gives support and shape to the body of some soft-bodied invertebrates.
   o Bones: rigid connective tissue with both organic and mineral components; in the vertebrate skeleton, bones are connected in ways that allow for support, protection, and movement.
   o Cartilage:unmineralized connective tissue that is softer and more flexible than bone; cartilage provides flexibility in movement and cushioning of joints in animals with bony skeletons

Gather Content

• What is a hydrostatic skeleton?
   o A hydrostatic skeleton is a fluid-filled body cavity surrounded by muscles that gives support and shape to the body of some soft-bodied invertebrates. Muscle contractions at one part of the body push the fluid toward another part of the body. This type of movement can best be observed in earthworms.
• What are bones and cartilage?
   o Bones and cartilage are types of connective tissues. Bones are rigid living tissues with both organic and mineralized components. In the boned vertebrate endoskeleton, bones are connected in ways that allow for support, protection, and movement when muscles contract and move the bones around. Cartilage is unmineralized, making it softer and more flexible than bone. In animals with bony skeletons, cartilage provides flexibility in movement and cushioning of joints.

Consider Possibilities

• True or False?
   o There are only possibilities to consider here. Either a hydrostatic skeleton has bones and cartilage, or it doesn't.

Choose Answer

• So which of the answer choices is the best?
   o In a hydrostatic skeleton, muscle contraction forces fluid to another part of the animal's body. In a bony skeleton, muscle contraction pulls bones to another part of the animals's body. These are two different approaches that both provide support and movement, but they don't go together. It is true that "a hydrostatic skeleton has no bones or cartilage".

Reflect on Process

• Did your problem-solving process lead you to the correct answer? If not, where did the process break down or lead you astray? How can you revise your approach to produce a more desirable result?
   o The question was asking whether a hydrostatic skeleton has bones or cartilage.
   o To get the correct answer, you needed to apply your understanding of hydrostatic skeletons to determine whether bones and cartilages were part of one.
   o If you got the correct answer, congratulations. If not, did you have trouble with the terms? If you don't know what a hydrostatic skeleton is, you may have matched skeleton with bone to pick the wrong answer.
   o Did you get thrown off by the negative in the statement? This statement is true because hydrostatic skeletons have "no bones or cartilage".