Though Homo habilis made blunt cutting tools, Neanderthals fashioned

VERITAS PREP OFFICIAL SOLUTION:

This problem is testing a mix of issues with modifiers and sentence construction. With the fairly confusing structure, the key is to first read the sentence carefully and figure out what role the different parts are playing: in the original the part from “tapering” to “sides” is a participial modifier giving extra information about “finer implements” – take that out with slash-and-burn to see that the sentence is really: “Neanderthals fashioned finer implements…to form the familiar teardrop now paradigmatic of early man.” This main clause seems perfectly correct so now examine the modifier: “tapering from the butt to the point and flaked on two sides.” While some people will think that “tapering” and “flaked” cannot go together, this is perfectly parallel – both are participial phrases linked with “and” giving descriptions of the implements, one using a present participle and other a past participle.

The other choices all have fatal flaws: in (B), (C), and (E) the two parts of the modifier are linked with a comma instead of “and”, making it seem that the last part “and formed,” “that form” or “forming” is part of that series, when it needs to be a separate element. You cannot say “implements, tapering…, flaked…, and formed/forming/that form the familiar teardrop…” (E) properly links the two elements with “and” but lacks the necessary “to” before form. The correct answer is (A).