Comment by cmiles74

I'm not convinced an LLM is really "recalling" any CS concepts when they try to solve a problem. IMHO, we're lucky if it matches the pattern of the request against the pattern of a solution and the two are actually related. I'm no expert but I don't think there's any reason to think that an LLM is taking a CS concept and applying it to something novel in order to get a solution. If they were, I believe their success rate would be much higher.

In many places where someone might reach for something they remember from their CS coursework, there's often an open-source library or tool doing much the same thing. Understanding how these libraries and tools function is certainly valuable but, much of the time, people can get by with only a vague hunch; indeed, this is why they exist! IMHO, I would be happier with the LLM assistant if it picked reliable library code rather than writing up a sketchy solution of its own.

I'm also familiar with this idea people who have managed to be successful in the field without a CS degree are more capable. In my opinion, this is hogwash. I think if we take a step back, we'll see that people graduating from established, top-tier CS programs are looking for higher pay than those who have come from a less expensive and (very often) business focused program. To be fair, people from each of these backgrounds has their strengths; in many organizations a developer who has done two semesters of accounting is a real benefit, in others the ability to turn a research paper into the prototype of a new product is going to be important.

Years of experience often washes out much of these differences. People who have started from business oriented education programs may end up taking a handful of CS courses as they navigate their career, likewise many people with a CS background end up accruing business centered skills.

In my opinion, people start out their education at a place that they can afford, a place that is familiar to them, often a place that they feel comfortable. Someone's economic background (and of their family) plays a big role on what kind of educational program they choose when they are on the cusp of adulthood. Smart and talented people can always learn what they need to learn, regardless of their starting point.