Script [6.10.1]:
set bank to "money in the bank"
set myBankList to bank as list
Explanation: Coercion allows us to convert variables from one type to another. In the above example I have created a variable bank which of String type. I then went on to create another variable named myBankList which contains the contents of bank. However a condition is specified. The condition says, when the contents of bank are being copied to myBankList, copy them as a list.
Figure 6.10.1 String To List
If the second statement did not specify as list that is,
set myBankList to bank
then output would be,
Figure 6.10.1-2 Output Without Coercion
The output no longer shows curly braces. This indicated no coercion has been performed.