SOME OBSERVATIONS ON RESILIENCE AND ROBUSTNESS IN HUMAN SYSTEMS DWIGHT READ Department of Anthropology and Department of Statistics, UCLA, Los Angeles, California, USA This article begins with a discussion of robustness versus resilience of a system. Next, I consider two aspects of human societies relevant to explicating human behavior and how each of these relates to robustness and resilience. The argument is exemplified through con- sideration of hunter–gatherer societies; more specifically, the material and cultural adaptive systems of the Netsilik Inuit, an Arctic hunter–gatherer group. Three structural conflicts in Netsilik society and their resolution through cultural practices are delineated. The relationship between these cultural practices and resilience versus robustness of the social systems is examined. The importance of self-monitoring of the state of a system as part of the system’s resilience is discussed, especially with regard to cultural systems that lead to group level benefits. INTRODUCTION While driving eastward along Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, California, USA, I observed the very tall, thin-trunked palm trees that border the boulevard. These trees sway gracefully in a wind, returning to their upright posture when the wind dies down. The amount they sway is considerable, depending on the strength of the wind. As I turned off the boulevard to a residential street the palm trees changed to sycamore trees, with heavy, substantial trunks. Even in a heavy wind the sycamore Address correspondence to Dr. Dwight Read, Department of Anthropology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90035. E-mail: dread@anthro.ucla.edu Cybernetics and Systems: An International Journal, 36: 773–802 Copyright Q 2005 Taylor & Francis Inc. ISSN: 0196-9722 print=1087-6553 online DOI: 10.1080/01969720500306253