When Machines Think Better Than We Do

If I could change one thing about the U.S. education system, it would be to prioritize problem solving over memorization.

When I first read Getting Things Done by David Allen, one idea stuck with me: our brains have limited energy—so we should use them for thinking, not just storing. Yet traditional education trains us to memorize instead of reason.

As a result, many adults struggle with basic problem-solving—not from lack of intelligence, but from lack of practice.

I recently saw a funny video of a dad totally misfiring on a simple logic puzzle. It’s relatable because we’ve all done it. He’s not dumb—just out of practice.

Meanwhile, I asked ChatGPT the same question, and it reasoned through it perfectly.

That got me wondering:

As AI gets better at reasoning, will humans get worse?

Will we use AI as a tutor to strengthen our thinking—or as a crutch that weakens it?

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