A new year often signifies a time of change and new beginnings.For Amanda Pless, 7, this year brought new opportunities to enter a world of sound.Last month, Amanda received a cochlear implant, a breakthrough device placed in the inner ear that has increased the hearing potential for more than 20,000 individuals and ignited debate among specialists.Unlike hearing aids, which merely amplify sounds and broadcast them into the ear, implants transmit sound signals directly to the auditory nerve.A microphone picks up sound waves and a speech processor converts them into electrical signals which are fed via electrodes to the nerves that carry sound information to the brain.

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Another day, another huge District 13-5A matchup on tap for both the Temple boys and girls basketball teams. Standing in their path is a Georgetown program whose teams both carry rankings in the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Class 5A polls. The ninth-ranked Eagles (22-2, 1-0 in district) invade Wildcat Gym today for a 7:30 p.m. tilt with the 12th-ranked Wildcats (19-3, 1-0) while the No. 16 Lady Eagles (17-7, 2-1) and Tem-Cats (6-12, 1-2) tip off at the same time in Georgetown. For the Wildcats, tonight's pairing of state powers is a showdown of immense proportions. Temple coach Bruce Etheridge said a Wildcats' win over Georgetown would not only give his team a leg up in the district race, but would be invaluable in terms of gaining early momentum. "There's a lot riding on this game," Etheridge said. "We feel like the winner may be able to set the tone for the first half of district play. Georgetown has a really good team with a lot of weapons, so we hope to have a huge home crowd to boost us. It's going to be a fun night." by Tom Day

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