Perhaps that mode of thinking is wrong, even if it is accepted.
Take rote memorization. It is hard. It sucks in so many ways (just because you memorized something doesn't mean you can reason using that information). Yet memorization also provides the foundations for growth. At a basic level, how can you perform anything besides trivial queries if you don't know what you are searching for? How can you assess the validity of a source if you don't know the fundamentals? How can you avoid falling prey to propaganda if your only knowledge of a subject is what is in front of your face? None of that is to say that we should dismiss search and depend upon memorization. We need both.
I can't tell you what to say to your children about LLMs. For one thing, I don't know what is important to them. Yet it is important to remember that it isn't an either-or thing. LLMs are probably going to be essential to manage the profoundly unmanagable amount of information our world creates. Yet it is also important to remember that they are like the person who memorizes but lacks the ability to reason. They may be able to impress people with their fountain of facts, yet they will be unable to create a mark on the world since they will lack the ability to create anything unique.
> At a basic level, how can you perform anything besides trivial queries if you don't know what you are searching for?
That's actually pretty doable. Almost every resource provides more context than just the exact thing you're asking. You build on that knowledge and continue asking. Nobody knows everything - we've been doing the equivalent of this kind of research forever.
> How can you assess the validity of a source if you don't know the fundamentals?
Learn about the fundamentals until you get to the level you're already familiar with. You're describing an adult outside of school environment learning basically anything.
Take rote memorization. It is hard. It sucks in so many ways (just because you memorized something doesn't mean you can reason using that information). Yet memorization also provides the foundations for growth. At a basic level, how can you perform anything besides trivial queries if you don't know what you are searching for? How can you assess the validity of a source if you don't know the fundamentals? How can you avoid falling prey to propaganda if your only knowledge of a subject is what is in front of your face? None of that is to say that we should dismiss search and depend upon memorization. We need both.
I can't tell you what to say to your children about LLMs. For one thing, I don't know what is important to them. Yet it is important to remember that it isn't an either-or thing. LLMs are probably going to be essential to manage the profoundly unmanagable amount of information our world creates. Yet it is also important to remember that they are like the person who memorizes but lacks the ability to reason. They may be able to impress people with their fountain of facts, yet they will be unable to create a mark on the world since they will lack the ability to create anything unique.