I think you are misinterpreting the terminology. Of course these models are not understanding physics in the way a physicists or a mathematician would. But th

I think you are misinterpreting the terminology. Of course these models are not understanding physics in the way a physicists or a mathematician would. But they do form a model of the world that can be used for forecasting and reasoning, in a way possibly not much unlike how humans and other animals operate when interacting with the physical world.