diff --git a/AMALGAM-BEGINNER-GUIDE.md b/AMALGAM-BEGINNER-GUIDE.md
index d9b31c2c..5a142a0f 100644
--- a/AMALGAM-BEGINNER-GUIDE.md
+++ b/AMALGAM-BEGINNER-GUIDE.md
@@ -133,7 +133,7 @@ if you want to change their values, you need to use the **(assign** opcode:
 For example, after you create a variable called **my\_list** that has a
 list of letters:
 
-    (declare (assoc my_list (list "a" "b" "c")))
+    (declare (assoc my_list ["a" "b" "c"] ))
 
 if you want to now edit **my\_list** and append the letter "d" to it,
 if you simply do this:
@@ -143,7 +143,7 @@ if you simply do this:
 nothing will happen because even though the code is evaluated, we didn't
 'do' anything to the evaluated outcome, we didn't store it into anything!  To update what value **my\_list** stores we have to do this:
 
-    (assign (assoc my_list (append my_list "d")))
+    (assign (assoc my_list (append my_list "d") ))
 
 
 To make this easier, Amalgam has the **(accum** opcode that can be used as such:
@@ -156,8 +156,8 @@ More examples of basic list operations:
 
         ;declare a couple of lists of letters
         (declare (assoc
-            kitty (list "A" "B" "C" "D" "E")
-            bunny (list "x" "y" "z")
+            kitty ["A" "B" "C" "D" "E"]
+            bunny ["x" "y" "z"]
         ))
 
         ;different types of list operations
@@ -167,26 +167,26 @@ More examples of basic list operations:
             last_in_kitty (last kitty) ; result is "E"
 
             ;(trunc removes items from the end of a list
-            truncate_1_item_in_kitty (trunc kitty) ; result is (list "A" "B" "C" "D")
+            truncate_1_item_in_kitty (trunc kitty) ; result is ["A" "B" "C" "D"]
 
-            truncate_all_items_in_kitty_leaving_2 (trunc kitty 2) ; result (list "A" "B" )
+            truncate_all_items_in_kitty_leaving_2 (trunc kitty 2) ; result ["A" "B"]
 
-            truncate_2_items_in_kitty (trunc kitty -2) ; result (list "A" "B" "C" )
+            truncate_2_items_in_kitty (trunc kitty -2) ; result ["A" "B" "C"]
 
 
             ;(tail removes items from the front of a list
-            remove_1_item_from_front_of_kitty (tail kitty) ; result is (list "B" "C" "D" "E")
+            remove_1_item_from_front_of_kitty (tail kitty) ; result is ["B" "C" "D" "E"]
 
-            remove_all_from_front_of_kitty_leaving_2 (tail kitty 2) ; result is (list "D" "E")
+            remove_all_from_front_of_kitty_leaving_2 (tail kitty 2) ; result is ["D" "E"]
 
-            remove_2_items_from_front_of_kitty (tail kitty -2) ; result is (list "C" "D" "E")
+            remove_2_items_from_front_of_kitty (tail kitty -2) ; result is ["C" "D" "E"]
 
             ;(append is straight forward
-            kitty_and_bunny (append kitty bunny) ;result is (list "A" "B" "C" "D" "E" "x" "y" "z")
+            kitty_and_bunny (append kitty bunny) ;result is ["A" "B" "C" "D" "E" "x" "y" "z"]
 
             size_of_kitty (size kitty) ;result is 5
 
-            reverse_of_kitty (reverse kitty) ;result is (list "E" "D" "C" "B" "A")
+            reverse_of_kitty (reverse kitty) ;result is ["E" "D" "C" "B" "A"]
         ))
 
     )
@@ -245,8 +245,8 @@ Use `(assign` to set previously declared variables.
 >
 >     ;Amalgam
 >     (declare (assoc x 5)) ;declare and set variable x to 5
->     (declare (assoc x (list "a" "b" "c"))) ;does nothing because x has already been declared
->     (assign (assoc x (list "a" "b" "c"))) ;sets variable x to a list of letters instead
+>     (declare (assoc x (list "a" "b" "c") )) ;does nothing because x has already been declared
+>     (assign (assoc x (list "a" "b" "c") )) ;sets variable x to a list of letters instead
 
 More examples with descriptions:
 
@@ -255,14 +255,14 @@ More examples with descriptions:
      ;a (declare (assoc will create an assoc of key -> value pairs where the values can be code itself.
      ;note: the declaration can be treated as though it's done in parallel, so you CANNOT use values in the same declare to
      ; calculate subsequent values like so:
-       (declare (assoc x 3 y 2 foo (* x y)))
+       (declare (assoc x 3 y 2 foo (* x y) ))
        (print foo "\n") ;outputs 0 because foo has already been evaluated, and when it was, x and y were nulls
     )
 
     (seq
      ;if you want to use declared values to make new values, you have to chain the declare statements like so:
        (declare (assoc x 3 y 2))
-       (declare (assoc foo (* x y))) ;the multiplication is evaluated right here so the result is stored in foo
+       (declare (assoc foo (* x y) )) ;the multiplication is evaluated right here so the result is stored in foo
        (print foo) ;thus we get the expected result of 6 here
     )
 
@@ -270,7 +270,7 @@ More examples with descriptions:
     ;if we want foo to be a function, we need to make sure the code isn't evaluated right away, to do that we wrap it in a 'lambda'
     (seq
        (declare (assoc x 3 y 2))
-       (declare (assoc foo (lambda (* x y)))) ;the multiplication is stored as the code itself, WITHOUT being evaluated
+       (declare (assoc foo (lambda (* x y)) )) ;the multiplication is stored as the code itself, WITHOUT being evaluated
 
        (print "foo: " foo "\n") ;thus this returns the unevaluated code for the multiplication that's stored into foo
 
@@ -369,7 +369,7 @@ coding standards, but can be unlabeled variables as well.
 >     ;outputs: 8
 >
 >     ;unlabeled function definition:
->     (declare (assoc mul (lambda (* x y))))
+>     (declare (assoc mul (lambda (* x y)) ))
 
 Notes:
 
@@ -607,8 +607,8 @@ usage: *(get <code><index>)*
     Getting an individual value from a list or an assoc is basic - you just specify the index of the item you want:
     (seq
         (declare (assoc
-            numbers (list 10 20 30 40 50)
-            numbers_map (assoc "a" 10 "b" 20 "c" 30)
+            numbers [10 20 30 40 50]
+            numbers_map { "a" 10 "b" 20 "c" 30 }
         ))
 
         (declare (assoc
@@ -628,8 +628,8 @@ using a list as the parameter:
 
     (seq
         (declare (assoc
-            numbers (list 10 20 (list "a" "b") 40 50)
-            numbers_map (assoc "a" 10 "b" 20 "c" (assoc "A" 1 "B" (list 2 4 8)))
+            numbers (list 10 20 ["a" "b"] 40 50)
+            numbers_map (assoc "a" 10 "b" 20 "c" {"A" 1 "B" [2 4 8]} )
         ))
 
         (declare (assoc
@@ -651,8 +651,8 @@ usage: *(set <code> <index> <new\_code>)*
 
     (seq
         (declare (assoc
-            numbers (list 10 20 30 40 50)
-            numbers_map (assoc "a" 10 "b" 20 "c" 30)
+            numbers [10 20 30 40 50]
+            numbers_map {"a" 10 "b" 20 "c" 30}
         ))
 
         (declare (assoc
diff --git a/examples/api_discovery/number_services.amlg b/examples/api_discovery/number_services.amlg
index 66f5d1c9..7deb8068 100644
--- a/examples/api_discovery/number_services.amlg
+++ b/examples/api_discovery/number_services.amlg
@@ -5,38 +5,38 @@
 
 	;concatenated version
 	#version (get (load "version.json") "version")
-	
+
 	;major version
 	#major_version 0
-	
+
 	;minor version
 	#minor_version 1
-	
+
 	;patch version
 	#patch_version 0
-	
+
 	;returns a structure containing all of the API details for this module
 	#get_api
 		(seq
 			(assoc
 				"description"
 				(get_entity_comments)
-				
+
 				"labels"
 				(map (lambda
 						(assoc
 							"description"
-							(target_value 1)
+							(current_value 1)
 							"parameters"
-							(get_entity_comments (null) (target_index 1) (true))
+							(get_entity_comments (null) (current_index 1) (true))
 						)
 					)
 					(get_entity_comments (null) (null) (true))
 				)
 			)
 		)
-		
-	
+
+
 	;returns true if number is even, false if it is not
 	;works for infinity, -infinity
 	;does not yet support negative numbers -- if a negative number is passed in,
@@ -49,30 +49,30 @@
 				; number to be passed in.  if none is passed in, defaults to 0
 				number 0
 			)
-			
+
 			(if
 				(= number .infinity)
 				(true)
-				
+
 				(= number -.infinity)
 				(true)
-				
+
 				(= number 42)
 				(assoc "a" (list (null) 3 (null) (list) (assoc "x" 12) .infinity) )
-				
+
 				(= number (null))
 				(list (true) (false))
-				
+
 				(< number 0)
 				"Negative numbers are not yet supported."
-				
+
 				(!= (get_type_string number) "number")
 				"That's not a number."
-			
+
 				(if (mod number 2) (false) (true))
 			)
 		)
-	
+
 	;given the list of numbers, returns an associative array with each key
 	; being the number and the value being the result of is_even
 	#are_even
@@ -80,11 +80,11 @@
 				;list of numbers
 				numbers (list)
 			)
-			
-			(zip numbers (map (lambda (call is_even (assoc number (target_value 1)))) numbers) )
-			
+
+			(zip numbers (map (lambda (call is_even (assoc number (current_value 1)))) numbers) )
+
 		)
-	
+
 	;given a and b, adds the numbers and returns the result of is_even
 	; if either a or b is null, then it will return null
 	#is_sum_even
diff --git a/examples/conways_game_of_life/game_of_life.amlg b/examples/conways_game_of_life/game_of_life.amlg
index 2aa156ef..bb15a8d3 100644
--- a/examples/conways_game_of_life/game_of_life.amlg
+++ b/examples/conways_game_of_life/game_of_life.amlg
@@ -16,52 +16,52 @@
 	))
 
 	;create some initial 'life'
-	;glider	
-    (assign (assoc
-        board_map
-            (set board_map
-                (list 0 4) 1
-                (list 1 4) 1
-                (list 2 4) 1
-                (list 2 3) 1
-                (list 1 2) 1
-            )
-    ))
-
-    ;oscillator
-    (assign (assoc
-        board_map
-            (set board_map
-                (list 30 44) 1
-                (list 31 44) 1
-                (list 32 44) 1
-            )
-    ))
-
-    ;still
-    (assign (assoc
-        board_map
-            (set board_map
-                (list 70 24) 1
-                (list 71 23) 1
-                (list 71 25) 1
-                (list 72 24) 1
-            )
-    ))
-
-    ;acorn methuseiah
-    (assign (assoc
-        board_map
-            (set board_map
-                (list 50 15) 1
-                (list 52 14) 1
-                (list 52 15) 1
-                (list 51 17) 1
-                (list 52 18) 1
-                (list 52 19) 1
-                (list 52 20) 1
-            )
-    ))
+	;glider
+	(assign (assoc
+		board_map
+			(set board_map
+				[ 0 4 ] 1
+				[ 1 4 ] 1
+				[ 2 4 ] 1
+				[ 2 3 ] 1
+				[ 1 2 ] 1
+			)
+	))
+
+	;oscillator
+	(assign (assoc
+		board_map
+			(set board_map
+				[ 30 44 ] 1
+				[ 31 44 ] 1
+				[ 32 44 ] 1
+			)
+	))
+
+	;still
+	(assign (assoc
+		board_map
+			(set board_map
+				[ 70 24 ] 1
+				[ 71 23 ] 1
+				[ 71 25 ] 1
+				[ 72 24 ] 1
+			)
+	))
+
+	;acorn methuseiah
+	(assign (assoc
+		board_map
+			(set board_map
+				[ 50 15 ] 1
+				[ 52 14 ] 1
+				[ 52 15 ] 1
+				[ 51 17 ] 1
+				[ 52 18 ] 1
+				[ 52 19 ] 1
+				[ 52 20 ] 1
+			)
+	))
 
 	;any live cell with two or three live neighbours survives.
 	;any dead cell with three live neighbours becomes a live cell.
@@ -105,8 +105,8 @@
 		(map
 			(lambda (seq
 				(map
-					(lambda (print (if (target_value) " X" " -") ) )
-					(target_value)
+					(lambda (print (if (current_value) " X" " -") ) )
+					(current_value)
 				)
 				(print "\n")
 			))
@@ -118,15 +118,15 @@
 				||(map
 					(lambda (let
 						(assoc
-							row_index (target_index 1)
-							row (target_value 1)
+							row_index (current_index 1)
+							row (current_value 1)
 						)
 
 						(map
 							(lambda (let
 								(assoc
-									col_index (target_index 1)
-									cell (target_value 1)
+									col_index (current_index 1)
+									cell (current_value 1)
 									num_neighbors 0
 								)
 
diff --git a/examples/fractals/mandelbrot_set.amlg b/examples/fractals/mandelbrot_set.amlg
index df7f8b8c..a4233fda 100644
--- a/examples/fractals/mandelbrot_set.amlg
+++ b/examples/fractals/mandelbrot_set.amlg
@@ -31,14 +31,14 @@
 			(map
 				(lambda (let
 					(assoc
-						row (target_index 1)
-						row_pixels (target_value 1)
+						row (current_index 1)
+						row_pixels (current_value 1)
 					)
 
 					(map
 						(lambda (let
 							(assoc
-								col (target_index 1)
+								col (current_index 1)
 								pixel 0
 								old_x 0
 								old_y 0
@@ -96,8 +96,8 @@
 	(map
 		(lambda (seq
 			(map
-				(lambda (print (if (target_value) " X" " -") ) )
-				(target_value)
+				(lambda (print (if (current_value) " X" " -") ) )
+				(current_value)
 			)
 			(print "\n")
 		))
diff --git a/examples/json_search/json-search.amlg b/examples/json_search/json-search.amlg
index 18e9b4a3..ab9649c7 100644
--- a/examples/json_search/json-search.amlg
+++ b/examples/json_search/json-search.amlg
@@ -17,13 +17,13 @@
 		)
 	)
 	(declare (assoc source_data (load source_file)))
-			
+
 	(declare (assoc
 		edit_dist
 		(map (lambda
 				(let (assoc
-						cur_file (concat (target_value 1))
-						cur_data (load (target_value 1))
+						cur_file (concat (current_value 1))
+						cur_data (load (current_value 1))
 					)
 
 					(list cur_file (edit_distance source_data cur_data))
@@ -32,25 +32,25 @@
 			json_files
 		)
 	))
-	
+
 	;sort by edit distance
 	(assign (assoc edit_dist
-		(sort (lambda (- (get (target_value) 1) (get (target_value 1) 1) )) edit_dist)
+		(sort (lambda (- (get (current_value) 1) (get (current_value 1) 1) )) edit_dist)
 	))
-	
+
 	(print "*** exact matches:\n")
 	(map (lambda
-			(print (get (target_value) 0) "\n")
+			(print (get (current_value) 0) "\n")
 		)
-	
-		(filter (lambda (= (get (target_value) 1) 0)) edit_dist)
+
+		(filter (lambda (= (get (current_value) 1) 0)) edit_dist)
 	)
-	
+
 	(print "*** best nonexact matches:\n")
 	(map (lambda
-			(print (get (target_value) 0) "\n")
+			(print (get (current_value) 0) "\n")
 		)
-	
-		(trunc (filter (lambda (> (get (target_value) 1) 0)) edit_dist) 5)
+
+		(trunc (filter (lambda (> (get (current_value) 1) 0)) edit_dist) 5)
 	)
 )
\ No newline at end of file