But remembering facts is exactly what it's for..? And even reasoning-based domains have parts that require rote memorization. E.g. "what is the halting problem?

But remembering facts is exactly what it's for..? And even reasoning-based domains have parts that require rote memorization. E.g. "what is the halting problem?" doesn't require any reasoning or understanding. One needs to know such definitions in order to even start the reasoning part.