# Memory Is Built From Symbols Like a Parse Tree by Bryant McGill > “Memory and thought are built largely from symbols. Much of what people remember is stored as language and image, organized like a branching tree of linked concepts, much as a programmer's parse tree organizes code. Changing the symbols changes how experience is filed and recalled.” > **— Bryant McGill**, *Reclaiming Selfishness, Balance, and the Whole Self, Part 1 - Livestream (Jun 2016)* ## Sources and Context - **Authoritative developed source:** [[livestreams/Reclaiming Selfishness, Balance, and the Whole Self, Part 1 - Livestream|Reclaiming Selfishness, Balance, and the Whole Self, Part 1 - Livestream]] — the Reminder reproduces the complete marked quotation object without alteration. For this workflow, the developed livestream document is the source authority. - **Broadcast passage:** In the June 1, 2016 broadcast, roughly 00:21:30 to 00:27:00, the speaker moves from polarity as the source of energy (positive and negative, on and off, zeros and ones, good and bad; see [[wiki/Binary Opposition|binary opposition]]) to [[wiki/Semiotic Twins|semiotic twins]] in [[wiki/Linguistics|linguistics]], [[wiki/Epistemology|epistemology]], [[wiki/Ontology|ontology]], the meaning of meaning ([[wiki/Semantics|semantics]]), symbolic memory ([[wiki/Symbolic Representation|symbolic representation]]), [[wiki/Parse Tree|parse trees]], and control over [[wiki/Lexicon|lexicons]]. - **Conceptual context:** The point follows the broadcast's claim that memories are constructed largely through language, compared to the parse trees and lexicons a programmer works with. ## Related Articles and Collections - **Collection:** [[collections/Simple Reminders|Simple Reminders]] - **Collection:** [[collections/Livestreams Collection|Livestreams Collection]] - **Article:** [[articles/Analog Cognition and the Architecture of Continuity|Analog Cognition and the Architecture of Continuity]] - **Article:** [[articles/Humans and AIs as Entangled Learning Systems|Humans and AIs as Entangled Learning Systems]] - **Livestream:** [[livestreams/Reclaiming Selfishness, Balance, and the Whole Self, Part 1 - Livestream|Reclaiming Selfishness, Balance, and the Whole Self, Part 1 - Livestream]] ## Related Topics - [[wiki/Symbolic Representation|Symbolic Representation]] ## Share on Social Media ``` “Memory and thought are built largely from symbols. Much of what people remember is stored as language and image, organized like a branching tree of linked concepts, much as a programmer's parse tree organizes code. Changing the symbols changes how experience is filed and recalled.” — Bryant McGill, Reclaiming Selfishness, Balance, and the Whole Self, Part 1 - Livestream (Jun 2016) https://bryantmcgill.com/simple-reminders-bryant-mcgill-memory-built-symbols-parse-tree ```