I attempted to memorize the times tables. Eventually, I noticed the pattern. From then on, I used the pattern rather than memorization. For example, I compute 9*12 as 90+18.

I don't think it's nitpicking. I think it goes to the heart of the issue: people saying "stuff I didn't use when I was a kid is BAD." The term "technology" is just being used as a veil to hide the lack of reasoning.