PSEi declines after peso hits new record low

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) was slightly lower on Friday, March 27, after the peso slid to a new low amid high oil prices fueled by the conflict in the Middle East. Read more

The peso weakened to ₱60.55 per dollar, surpassing the previous historic low of ₱60.3 set earlier this week, according to data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines. Read more

Fuel hikes to ease next week

 

Fuel hikes to ease next week; Camago-3 gas breakthrough a major step in oil security

PUBLIC utility vehicles (PUVs) continue to ply their usual routes along a busy street in Davao City on Thursday, March 26. (Photo by Keith Bacongco I MB)

Fuel prices are expected to offer a slight reprieve to motorists next week, as easing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East begin to cool global energy benchmarks. According to industry data based on the four-day trading Mean of Platts Singapore, gasoline prices are projected to remain flat or see a minimal increase of up to ₱3 per liter. Read more

Meanwhile, Senator Pia Cayetano on Friday, March 27 welcomed the successful drilling of the Camago-3 gas well, saying it a breakthrough for the Philippine’s energy security and local energy production. Read more

Monitoring ‘happiness’

 

Mahar MangahasMarch 21, 2026 12:09 am

March 20th was the United Nations’ annual International Day of Happiness, which stemmed from a 2012 UN Resolution initiated by Bhutan, the famed originator of the Gross National Happiness (GNH) concept. It explains the timing of the release of: (a) the Social Weather Stations (SWS) report, “Fourth Quarter 2025 Social Weather Survey: 33% of Pinoys are ‘very happy’ with life; 23% are ‘very satisfied’ with life” (www.sws.org.ph, 3/19/26), and (b) the 2026 World Happiness Report (WHR), published by the Wellbeing Research Group of the University of Oxford in partnership with Gallup, the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, and the WHR’s editorial board.

Happiness of Filipinos according to SWS. The SWS report discloses its two survey questions for monitoring happiness, one with the adjective “happy” (masaya) and another with the adjective “satisfied” (nasisiyahan), and both describing the respondent’s present life as a whole. Each option has a four-point scale: Very Happy/Fairly Happy/Not Very Happy/Not At All Happy and Very Satisfied/Fairly Satisfied/Not Very Satisfied/Not At All Satisfied. SWS has asked the “happy-life” question 49 times since 1991, and the satisfied-life question 57 times since 2002; see the report’s charts and tables.

Personally, I think the happy-life option goes straight to the point; I also like to focus more on downside rather than the upside. In 2025, SWS used both options in two surveys, with these average results (in percentages): 32 Very Happy, 52 Fairly Happy, 14 Not Very Happy, and 2 Not At All Happy; and 29 Very Satisfied, 51 Fairly Satisfied, 14 Not Very Satisfied, and 6 Not At All Satisfied. For me, these may be simplified into 16 percent “unhappy” and 20 percent “dissatisfied.”

Back in 2021, when SWS did four surveys, the average unhappy was 17 percent and the average dissatisfied was 21 percent, i.e., 2025 showed a tiny improvement in subjective well-being. (I cite 2021 at this point, for comparability with the WHR which uses a three-year rolling average—last year’s WHR involves data as far back as 2022.)

Happiness according to the World Happiness Report. The WHR’s data are from the annual Gallup World Poll, which asks about life-satisfaction, by likening it to being somewhere on a 10-step ladder (from the ground numbered 0 to the top numbered 10, thus 11 points in all), where 10 is the best life, and 0 is the worst life that the respondent thinks could possibly happen to him/her. This is asked with regard to one’s present life, and also with regard to one’s expected life in five years’ time, and then the two are averaged. The WHR uses rolling averages: its 2026 figure combines 2023 to 2025, and its 2025 figure combines 2022 to 2024.

Personally, I prefer questions answerable by choosing words rather than by choosing a number. The only thing definite about a 0-10 scale is that five is the middle, and therefore, all steps of six upward are satisfactory, while all steps of four downward are unsatisfactory.

In the WHR of 2026, Finland at 7.76 is No. 1 again, while Afghanistan at 1.45 is No. 147 and last (the published figures have three decimal places but here I round to two places). At just over 5.00 is South Africa, No. 101; therefore 101/147 or 68.7 percent of the “peoples” (not identical to “countries”) are, on average, satisfied with their lives to some extent, while 31.3 percent of them are not.

The Philippine score is 6.21, up a little bit from 6.11 in WHR 2025. Its rank is 56th versus 57th last year. Here are the current WHR scores and ranks of our Asean neighbors: 36th Singapore, 6.58; 45th Vietnam, 6.43; 52nd Thailand, 6.30; 71st Malaysia, 6.00; 87th Indonesia, 5.62; 92nd Laos, 5.52; 121st Cambodia, 4.46; and 129th Myanmar, 4.29. I see no figures for Brunei and Timor Leste.

We should not envy any other peoples that have higher scores, nor feel superior to those with lower ones. Happiness is not an international sport; it is no basis for national pride or shame. Other peoples’ achievements do not lessen us; their failings do not enhance us. What happens abroad can teach us what to imitate and what to avoid.

And Bhutan? There’s no WHR data for the country that officially eschews the gross national product. As of a decade ago, its GNH had only two data points (see “Gross National Happiness,” 11/28/15). In 2022, its GNH index was reportedly at .781, with 9.5 percent “deeply happy,” 38.6 percent “extensively happy,” 45.5 percent “narrowly happy,” and 6.4 percent “unhappy.” (investopedia.com)

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mahar.mangahas@sws.org.ph

Ivy Reyes Padilla

 

Ivy Reyes Padilla, a 25-year-old Filipina beauty queen and entrepreneur from Cagayan de Oro City, proudly stands as an official candidate for Binibining Pilipinas 2026. Known for her dedication to empowering modern Filipina beauty, she continues to inspire through her advocacy on fitness, nutrition, and holistic well-being.

Her pageantry journey reflects both passion and perseverance—from competing in Miss Teen Philippines 2019 alongside notable candidates, to earning the title of 1st Runner-Up at Miss Fit Philippines 2025. Today, she carries her hometown’s pride, representing the “City of Golden Friendship” on a national stage.

Beyond the spotlight, Ivy is the founder of Project Second Sunrise, a platform that promotes purpose-driven living and self-improvement. As she steps into this new chapter, she embodies grace, strength, and a commitment to meaningful impact.

#BinibiningPilipinas2026 #IvyPadilla #ModernFilipina #BeautyWithPurpose #PageantJourney #CagayanDeOro #WomenEmpowerment #FitnessAndWellness #ProjectSecondSunrise #PhilippinePageantry #pageantbulletin #fblifestyles

Going beyond our human and natural justice

By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

THAT’S how true love is! It, of course, does not do away with natural and human justice, but it does not get stuck with it either. It goes further. Human and natural justice somehow involves self-interest that is of the good kind. But charity enables us to give our all even at the expense of what is legitimate to us according the standards of human and natural justice. It is willing to suffer injustice.

Charity, in fact, is what perfects human and natural justice. But make no mistake about it. It should be the charity as shown, nay, commanded, to us by Christ himself. He showed this charity in its purest form when he offered his life as a ransom for our sins. It’s a charity that is purely gratuitous and most magnanimous. He suffered the greatest evil here on earth, and in return, he offered forgiveness and mercy.

How is this charity a perfection of our justice? It perfects our justice since it does not so much get stuck with what wrong we committed as it renders the best consideration of who we really are. We might commit many mistakes, even grave sins, but we continue to be children of God. And it’s for that reason that it, as shown by Christ, is willing to suffer for us and die for us if only to pay for whatever sin we commit.

This, of course, does not mean that we should do away with our human and natural justice. We can and we should pursue the requirements of our human and natural justice. But we should not get stuck there. We should continually ask for God’s grace to acquire the relevant spirit, attitude, virtues and skills of how to raise our sense of justice to the level of divine charity.

We need to see to it that we learn how to go beyond our human and natural justice by being merciful the way Christ is merciful with everyone of us. And everyday, we actually are given many opportunities to live mercy that goes beyond our brand of justice.

When we take the initiative to love and understand people, irrespective of how they are and what they may have done, we are already practicing mercy. When we are quick to disregard differences and just work for the common good, when we try to find excuses for the weaknesses if not the mistakes of others, we are clearly being merciful.

We should try our best to be above purely human considerations in our dealings with others, and just follow the example of Christ. That way we would know how to make our human and natural justice give way to mercy, the ultimate expression of charity.

I wonder if our idea of what Christian life ought to be includes this very important factor of mercy and charity. Only when we have these desires to dispense divine mercy to others can we sincerely say that we are truly Christian, another Christ if not Christ himself, as we ought to be.

In our daily examination of conscience, let us try to see if we have been doing something concrete in this regard. Are we willing to bear the sins of others, in an effort to reflect Christ’s attitude toward all of us who are all sinners? Are we quick to forgive and bear the consequences of the mistakes people commit even as we try to sort out things according to our human and natural justice?

Happiness in today's world

 

Happiness in today’s world is a subjective, often elusive state blending emotional joy, deep contentment, and personal meaning rather than just constant pleasure. It is increasingly defined by strong relationships, mental well-being, and resilience, rather than just material success, although consumerist culture influences.

Happiness is a state of mind. Specifically, it is a state of “well-being and contentment.”

Happiness is a positive emotional state characterized by feelings such as contentment, joy, and life satisfaction. Explore ways to improve happiness.

But the definition can be tricky and assumptions about the word can cause confusion. Many don’t even realize learning how to be happy is something that can be intentionally practiced. Some people, when they hear the word ‘happiness,’ assume it is speaking of an emotion such as pleasure or joy. For them, it is what people feel in the immediate here and now.

This is the reason some people say, “Don’t pursue happiness, seek joy. Happiness is fickle and fading, joy remains forever.”

But this short-term definition of happiness is not how everyone understands the word. Some define it to mean long-term satisfaction.

In fact, when I speak of experiencing happiness in life, I am not thinking of short-term emotions at all. I think of a quality of living—a much longer-term view of the word.

Both definitions are understood to be correct and speak of different realities.

But are they really that different? I don’t think so.

After all, a long-term experience of life satisfaction is almost certainly made up of many short-term feelings of joy and pleasure. Does that mean every day is a great day with no trials, temptations, or downturns? Certainly not. But it does mean when we look back at the many seasons of life, we can look back satisfied at how we navigated them.

The long-term feeling of life satisfaction is most experienced when we embrace the emotion of joy in the here and now.

And we accomplish that by taking steps each day to be happy.

What makes you feel happy now? Doing something you’re good at, such as cooking or dancing, is a good way to enjoy yourself and have a sense of achievement. Try to avoid things that seem enjoyable at the time but make you feel worse afterwards, such as drinking too much alcohol or eating junk food.

Why is being happy important? Experiencing happiness is important for our emotional and physical health. A stronger sense of happiness and wellbeing has been shown to lead to better relationships, increase social connection and contribution to the lives of others, as well as contributing to healthier physical wellbeing.

Is being happy the most important thing in life? Happy people are healthier all around and more likely to be healthy in the future. Happy people live longer than those who are not as happy. Happy people are more productive and more creative, and this effect extends to all those experiencing positive emotions.

Am I happy? Yes. Living in the Philippines for almost 28 years for good, I learned to be happy. Even during hard times. Filipinos are generally a happy people. They can smile whatever the situation. Their happy-go-lucky nature and positive mindset allow them to bounce back from the direst of circumstances, from disasters, from wars, and surely from today’s global situation.

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Even after retiring as German Consul, I am still accredited as a German translator and interpreter for the German, Swiss and Austrian Embassy as well as for Regional Trial Court Davao City and all courts nationwide. Please pm for via doringklaus@gmail.com further information. I'll be answering your messages as soon as possible. Please be patient. Auch nach meiner Pensionierung als deutscher Konsul bin ich weiterhin als deutscher Übersetzer und Dolmetscher für die deutsche, schweizerische und österreichische Botschaft sowie für das Regional Trial Court Davao City landesweit akkreditiert. Für weitere Informationen senden Sie bitte eine PN an doringklaus@gmail.com. Ich werde Ihre Nachrichten so schnell wie möglich beantworten.

When the lab never sleeps

What AI-powered science means for the future of medicine

By Dr. Kaycee Reyes

Published Mar 26, 2026 08:48 pm

• The AI agents can hallucinate facts. They are bound by their training data. They needed human guidance at every major decision point.

There’s a particular kind of exhaustion that only happens in medicine. Not the physical kind, though that’s real too, but the kind that sets in when you know exactly what a patient needs and you also know that the science simply isn’t there yet. I’ve felt it in the clinic. I felt it during the pandemic, watching colleagues scramble for answers in real time, watching the virus mutate faster than our therapies could keep up. We had brilliant people working around the clock across every field imaginable, and still, the gap between what we understood and what we could actually do felt enormous. What I kept noticing, even then, was that the bottleneck wasn’t intelligence. It was coordination. Getting the right minds in the same room, speaking the same language, moving fast enough to matter.

That memory came rushing back when I read a study published in Nature last October that stopped me mid-scroll. A team from Stanford had done something quietly extraordinary: they built an AI system—they called it the Virtual Lab—where multiple AI agents, each assigned a different scientific identity (an immunologist, a machine learning specialist, a computational biologist), essentially held research meetings. Together, guided by a single human researcher, they designed new nanobodies capable of binding to recent variants of SARS-CoV-2.

Let me translate that out of scientific jargon for a moment.

Nanobodies are tiny, elegant antibody fragments, derived originally from camels, of all things, that can bind to viral proteins with remarkable precision. They’re smaller and more stable than conventional antibodies, easier to produce, and potentially powerful as therapeutic tools. The challenge with SARS-CoV-2 is that the virus keeps evolving. By the time a therapy is developed for one variant, the virus has already moved on. It’s like trying to catch smoke.

What the Virtual Lab did was compress the discovery timeline dramatically. The AI agents debated, critiqued each other, wrote their own code, designed a multi-step pipeline using state-of-the-art protein modeling tools, and ultimately produced 92 candidate nanobody sequences, all in a matter of days. When human researchers in the lab then tested these computationally designed molecules, more than 90 percent expressed and folded properly. Two of them showed genuine, promising binding to the most recent viral variants while still recognizing the original strain.

That last detail matters more than it might seem. Cross-reactivity, the ability to work across multiple variants, is exactly what makes a therapeutic candidate worth pursuing further.

Now, I want to be careful here, because this is where health communication so often goes sideways. This is not a cure. These are early-stage candidates. The road from a promising binding profile to a clinically approved treatment is long, expensive, and uncertain. Anyone who tells you otherwise is selling something.

But what this work represents conceptually is worth sitting with.

For most of medical history, breakthrough science has required large, well-funded, deeply connected research teams. Most research institutions in the world, including many excellent ones right here in Asia, simply don’t have that kind of concentrated expertise under one roof. The Virtual Lab model suggests a future where that gap narrows, where a smaller team with access to the right AI infrastructure can punch significantly above their weight class.

There are real limitations, of course. The AI agents can hallucinate facts. They are bound by their training data. They needed human guidance at every major decision point. The researchers were clear about this. The human researcher wasn’t decorative. They were essential, providing context, catching errors, making judgment calls that the agents couldn’t.

That balance, I think, is the real lesson here. The most interesting future of medicine isn’t AI replacing physicians and scientists. It’s AI doing what it does brilliantly, processing complexity, synthesizing across disciplines, iterating rapidly, while humans do what we do that machines still genuinely cannot: ask the right questions, weigh ethical considerations, and take responsibility for outcomes.

As someone who practices medicine, runs a clinic, and thinks about health futures professionally, I find this moment less frightening than some of my colleagues do, and more genuinely exciting. We are watching the infrastructure of discovery change in real time.

The lab, in a sense, never has to sleep anymore.

What we do with that, the questions we choose to ask it, the oversight we insist on, the equity of access we fight for… That part is still entirely ours.

Pinoy pride: The first trailer of DreamWorks 'Forgotten Island' featuring Filipino culture

 

By Robert Requintina

Published Mar 26, 2026 12:03 am | Updated Mar 26, 2026 08:15 am

DreamWorks Animation released the first trailer of "Forgotten Island" on March 25, an original film that puts the unbreakable bond between two best friends to the ultimate test.

Rooted in rich Filipino culture, the film stars H.E.R. and Liza Soberano as Jo and Raissa — lifelong best friends and recent high school graduates on the verge of going their separate ways. But before they can say goodbye, a fateful accident sends them hurtling to Nakali, a mysterious island teeming with Filipino mythical creatures.

A scene from 'Forgotten Island' (Images courtesy of Universal Pictures)

Desperate to find their way home, they cross paths with Raww (Dave Franco), a charming weredog, and come face to face with the island’s most terrifying legend — the fearsome Manananggal (Lea Salonga). 

“Forgotten Island” also stars Jenny Slate, Manny Jacinto, Dolly de Leon, Jo Koy, and Ronny Chieng. Catch the captivating tale as “Forgotten Island” arrives in Philippine cinemas on Sept. 23. Check out Universal Pictures PH (FB), UniversalPicturesPH (IG), and UniversalPicsPH (TikTok) for the latest news and updates.

About 'Forgotten Island'

Your best friendship is worth fighting for.

DreamWorks Animation, the studio that brought you unforgettable bonds between a boy and a dragon in How to Train Your Dragon, an ogre and a donkey in Shrek, and a robot and a gosling in The Wild Robot, now welcomes a dazzling and emotional story about two lifelong best friends who must come together before they drift apart in Forgotten Island. 

The official film poster of 'Forgotten Island'

The new original film is written and directed by Academy Award® nominee Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado and is produced by Academy Award® nominee Mark Swift, the filmmaking team behind Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. 

Grammy and Academy Award® winning supernova H.E.R. and Liza Soberano (Lisa Frankenstein, Alone/Together) star as high school graduates Jo and Raissa, who have been best friends since grade school but are now about to embark on separate life paths. 

While celebrating their last night together, Jo and Raissa stumble upon a mysterious portal that transports them to the fantastical island of Nakali, packed with magical and mythological creatures they grew up hearing stories about from their Filipino families.   

Some of these figures will become friends, some foes. Joined by well-meaning-but- hapless weredog Raww (Dave Franco) and a small-but-mighty pack of pals, Jo and Raissa must face The Dreaded Manananggal (Tony winning icon Lea Salonga), the most feared creature on the island. When they discover that the memories of their entire friendship are the price for returning home, Jo and Raissa will race to find a way to leave the island before they forget each other forever.  

The film’s all-star voice cast also includes Emmy nominee Jenny Slate (Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, Dying for Sex), Manny Jacinto (The Good Place, Top Gun: Maverick), BAFTA nominee Dolly de Leon (Triangle of Sadness, Ghostlight), global comedy superstar Jo Koy (Haunted Mansion, Jo Koy: Live from Brooklyn) and Emmy winner Ronny Chieng (The Daily Show, M3GAN).  

DreamWorks Animation’s "Forgotten Island" is distributed by Universal Pictures.

Translate state of emergency into economic sustainability

By Manila Bulletin

Published Mar 26, 2026 12:01 am

The declaration of a state of national energy emergency, precipitated by the escalating conflict in the Middle East, underscores the Philippines’ vulnerability to external shocks. As a nation heavily dependent on imported fuel, geopolitical instability in a region central to global energy supply inevitably reverberates across the domestic economy. Executive Order No. 110, therefore, is a response to an unfolding international crisis with potentially far-reaching national consequences.

Yet, while the declaration underscores urgency, it does not, in itself, guarantee stability. This is why it is incumbent upon the government to ensure that this extraordinary measure is translated into a coherent, forward-looking strategy rather than a reactive posture. The distinction is critical. A reactive approach risks exacerbating uncertainty; a proactive one can mitigate disruption and sustain public confidence.

Central to this effort is the need to substantiate assurances regarding the stability of the power supply. Mere general statements that widespread outages are unlikely to happen won’t provide peace of mind, particularly in the face of rising fuel prices and heightened public concern. What is necessary is a transparent presentation of the country’s energy position—the adequacy of reserve margins, the existence of secured alternative fuel sources, the contractual obligations of independent power producers, and the sufficiency of fuel inventories to weather prolonged disruptions. These are tangible indicators that can credibly demonstrate preparedness and reassure both industry and the public.

Equally crucial is the early implementation of demand-side management measures. The government must not wait for shortages to manifest before encouraging conservation. Instead, it should institutionalize mechanisms such as time-of-use pricing, incentivized reductions in peak-hour consumption, and comprehensive energy efficiency programs. Public sector compliance is particularly important; government institutions must exemplify discipline in energy use, thereby reinforcing the credibility of broader conservation efforts.

The private sector likewise plays an indispensable role. Energy producers, distributors, and fuel importers are integral to maintaining supply stability. The government must provide a stable regulatory environment that encourages these entities to invest in diversified energy sources, maintain adequate reserves, and expand capacity where necessary. In turn, the private sector must adhere to principles of transparency and fairness, particularly in pricing and supply allocation, to prevent exacerbating public anxiety during a period of heightened vulnerability.

Moreover, the continuity of economic activity depends on seamless coordination across sectors. The uninterrupted transport of fuel, food, and essential commodities must be ensured through close collaboration between energy providers, logistics firms, and transport operators. Any disruption within this interconnected system risks triggering a cascade of adverse effects that could undermine the very objectives of the emergency declaration.

At the same time, the participation of individual citizens remains vital. Energy conservation at the household level, reduced reliance on private vehicles, and mindful consumption patterns collectively contribute to national resilience. However, such participation must be cultivated through clear, consistent, and credible communication from the government, positioning citizens not merely as beneficiaries of policy but as active partners in its implementation.

Finally, the government must remain cognizant of the broader socio-economic implications of an energy crisis. Supply disruptions and escalating costs can impede economic activity, strain household incomes, and potentially give rise to social instability, including opportunistic criminal activity. Preventing such outcomes requires not only securing energy supply but also ensuring the timely delivery of targeted assistance to vulnerable sectors.

Therefore, the present energy emergency—rooted in geopolitical conflict beyond the country’s borders—demands governance that is anticipatory rather than reactive, transparent rather than rhetorical, and coordinated rather than fragmented. The effectiveness of the government’s response will ultimately be measured not by the declaration of state of emergency, but by its capacity to translate them into sustained stability, economic continuity, and public assurance.