ABSTRACT
386Afghanistan is a landlocked country, bordered on the west by Iran; on the north by Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan; on the northeast by China; and on the east by Pakistan. Afghanistan, a country about the size of Texas, boasts elevations to more than 7315 m (24,000 f). Its rugged topography has both physical and cultural implications, critical to understanding why the country has never been totally conquered (Lineback 2001).
