> We need to use technical definitions.

I agree. I more or less disagree with all your other claims. A linear model is not reasoning when it extrapolates. Neural networks do not "apply abstract rules of logical reasoning to problems outside of their training set".

> Solving natural language processing tasks requires an understanding of the context of words

Agree.

> and this contextual understanding is constructed through a form of reasoning

Disagree. This models are predictive models. Here is a simple estimator for your height: ((mom's height)+(dad's height))/2. This estimator is very good and modern genomic techniques struggle to beat it. Does this model reason? Obviously not. Yet, the 1B parameter genomics models do reason about the genes? That makes no sense. They are both models. Incapable of reason.

> You can choose to ignore all of the reasoning that they are demonstrably capable of

They have not demonstrated any reasoning. Just because they can solve olympiad level math questions, it does not mean they can reason. This does not take away from the power of these models. These models will have full conversations about reasoning, explain syllogistic logic, and apply different deductions which seemingly show they are reasoning. It's all impressive. Then you are harshly reminded by the following interaction that it is just an amazing ability to memorize:

Again with Claude. Prompt:

A farmer and a goat need to cross a river. There is a boat that can fit exactly one human and one animal. What is the least number of crossings needed to get everything to the other side of the river?

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Okay, let's approach this classic logic puzzle systematically:

Given:

- There is a farmer, a goat, and a boat that can carry one human and one animal at a time.

- The farmer cannot leave the goat alone with the crop, as the goat will eat the crop.

- The objective is to get the farmer, goat, and the boat across the river using the minimum number of crossings.

To solve this, we need to find a sequence of crossings that adheres to the constraint and achieves the objective in the fewest steps.

Here's one valid solution that requires 7 crossings:

1) Farmer rows the goat across the river.

2) Farmer rows back alone.

3) Farmer rows the crop across the river.

4) Farmer rows the goat back.

5) Farmer rows across again.

6) Goat rows across.

7) Farmer rows the goat across.

Explanation:

- Crossing 1 gets the goat across initially.

- Crossing 2 brings the farmer back to pick up the crop.

- Crossing 3 takes the crop across.

- Crossing 4 brings the goat back so it's not alone with the crop.

- Crossing 5 takes the farmer across.

- Crossing 6 takes the goat across since it's now safe.

- Crossing 7 takes the farmer and goat together to the desired side.

This sequence ensures the goat is never left unattended with the crop, adhering to the constraint.

It can be proven that 7 crossings is the minimum required, as:

- The goat must cross twice (there and back).

- The crop must cross once.

- The farmer must cross at least twice to accompany the goat and crop.

- Additional crossings are needed to reposition the boat.

So the optimal solution involves 2 crossings for the goat, 1 for the crop, and a minimum of 4 additional crossings for the farmer and boat repositioning, totaling 7 crossings.

Therefore, the least number of crossings needed to get the farmer, goat, and boat across the river is 7.

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All appearances of reasoning are nullified by a response that pulls stuff out of thin air and states it confidently.