Ghost in the Machine

Release type:What's this?
studio album
First released:
1981

Overview Edit

The "ghost in the machine" is British philosopher Gilbert Ryle's derogatory description of René Descartes' mind-body dualism. The phrase was introduced in Ryle's book The Concept of Mind (1949) to highlight the perceived absurdity of dualist systems like Descartes' where mental activity carries on in parallel to physical action, but where their means of interaction are unknown or, at best, speculative.

Much of the following material is from Arthur Koestler's discussion in his 1967 book, The Ghost in the Machine, which takes Ryle's phrase as its title. The book's main focus is mankind's movement towards self-destruction, particularly in the nuclear arms arena. It is particularly critical of B. F. Skinner's behaviourist theory. One of the book's central concepts is that as the human brain has grown, it has built upon earlier, more primitive brain structures, and that these are the "ghost in the machine" of the title. Koestler's theory is that at times these structures can overpower higher logical functions, and are responsible for hate, anger and other such destructive impulses.

The Overview appearing in this section is attributed to Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghost_in_the_Machine. Portions of this Overview may be available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, version 3.0 or any later version, available at: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/. Additional terms may apply. See Wikipedia Terms of Use for details.

This particular version Edit

Record label:
Catalog number:
069 493 598-2
Release dates:
  • Mar 4 2003

Genres

Classic Rock, Hip-Hop, New Wave, Progressive Rock. Vote on Genres

What do Amazon.com customers think?

4 stars Yin Or Yang?
For me this is a far better album than "Zenyatta Mondatta." I even prefer it over "Synchronicity." Here the band is sour, relaxed, & robust. Some of their previous work seemed a little forced, but with these songs they appear to gel. I'll only focus on four of them. "Spirits In The Material World," is a cutting testament to the shallow material things that many view as essential to their momentary contentment. The reggae feel enlivens the somber mood. "Everything She Does Is Magic," is a spunky …
Written by SUPPORT THE ASPCA. "PILUM THROWER!"
3 stars Multi-Channel or Stereo
If you are wondering if this SACD is Multi channel 5.1, its NOT.

The back says "SACD Stereo CD Audio".

The Audio CD sounds great but the rear and center speakers dont come up for bat in this format.
Written by SACD listerner

Track listing Edit

Credits Edit

Other versions Edit

Ghost in the Machine 11 tracks format: 1 x CD
record label: Interscope Records
catalog number: 069 493 598-2
release dates: Mar 4 2003
view details
Ghost in the Machine 11 tracks format: 1 x CD
record label: Universal Japan
release dates: Jan 29 2008
view details
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