Which of the following statements best describes the rationale for applying the principle of parsimony in constructing phylogenetic trees?

A) Parsimony allows the researcher to "root" the tree.
B) Parsimony ensures there will be no homoplasous traits in the tree.
C) Similarity due to common ancestry should be more common than similarity due to convergent evolution.
D) Parsimony helps clarify the goals of evolution.