ARTICLES: Gates
Gates are points of entry into any given space which is enclosed by walls, or it serves as an opening in a fence. The gate may serve to control or prevent exit or entry into the given area, or they may serve as nothing more than a decorative feature. Additional terms used to refer to gates include yett and port. Larger sized gates can be used to secure the premises of an entire building, such as a fortified town or a castle. Likewise, a gate can also totally block doors, preventing entry through a gatehouse. In today's modern society, most large or elaborate gate doors open via an automated gate opening system. Rod iron gates are often found blocking entry to large estate homes or clearly suggesting the borderline between the property and the roadway. Elegant but small gates may lead to a small meadow path. Historic gates, such as the Ishtar Gate, remind us of times long past where large, elaborate, extremely strong gates were necessary. In our modern era, electronic gateways serve a much different purpose than their physically structured cousins by providing us protection from cyber invaders and allows welcomed communications traffic to pass through. Finally, some gates are physically present, yet rarely used, as was the case at Columbia University in 2007. There, a large, tall, extremely strong rod iron gate encompasses the campus, yet for the most part remains open to the public. In 2007, the gates were closed in an attempt to prevent protestors from entering, who were there to protest the arrival of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.Whether decorative or practical, small or large, weak or strong, gates serve a noteworthy purpose in our lives. Regardless of where, or how, gates are used, they still help us to keep things (or people) where we want them to be.