Editing Openai/691f28ce-4d24-8005-8811-b79780538b01 (section)

=== 4. Is the world symbolically constructed in the same way LLMs process tokens? ===

Short answer: Partially metaphorically… but not literally.

===== Yes—symbolically, humans “tokenize” the world. =====

Human perception:
* Carves continuous reality into discrete perceived units
* Attaches linguistic labels (tokens)
* Organizes meaning through narratives (like a generative model)
* Uses schemas and archetypal structures

So at a high level:
* Humans filter raw sensation through categories
* LLMs filter raw text through learned embeddings Both create symbolic worlds rather than consuming “raw reality.”

===== But no—the mechanisms are fundamentally different. =====

Humans:
* Ground concepts in sensorimotor experience
* Use body-based affordances
* Construct meaning through intentionality and consciousness

LLMs:
* Symbol-processors without true grounding
* No bodily perspective
* No unified or continuous experience
* No first-person world

So the analogy is useful philosophically, but not ontologically.