How many of you are willing to brave a long boat ride, take a challenging hike through forest and mountain, and slither down a cave for the singular purpose of seeing human remains? It's not many people's idea of fun, certainly not for those past the age of dreaming they are Indiana Jones. But for a group of 20 students of anthropology, the journey was well worth the hardship, and the reward of seeing up close the strangely modified skulls was a dream-come-true.

The vaunted site (at least for those into the study of humanity, as anthropology is defined) is the Guyangan Cave System in Banton, the northernmost island of Romblon. Guyangan is network of caves known to hold a rich trove of archaeological treasures that could well hold the key to understanding in greater detail the evolution of our race.

The skulls there are unique in its inexplicable deformity: the foreheads are much higher than a regular human. How did this happen and why? The answers are still in the speculative stage but our lead story this week by UP anthropology major Aidrielle Raymundo about their trip to Banton is fascinating.

Just as fascinating is cultural writer Pablo Tariman's story about Damodar Das Castillo, a cello prodigy who is just 16 years old but has already won five first prizes in international competitions, performed in various international stages and earned standing ovations from ecstatic audiences.

An anthropological documentation of a different kind is the story of a pandemic as seen through the experiences of Fil-Am health care workers in its frontlines. There is a book about it and we're appreciating it this week.

And speaking of books, book designing is a specialized art that few have mastered. But a Filipino artist named Felix Mago Miguel has done just that and he's profiled by PF correspondent now based in France, Criselda Yabes.

With deep sorrow, we pay tribute to Barbara "Tweetums" Gonzalez, one of the Philippines' best columnists, who passed away in Manila on May 28. Her first publisher, Karina Africa Bolasco, writes a stirring tribute to this lady who wrote so beautifully about life. We are also posting a piece from her Facebook page, which was her column for the Philippine Star on April 24.

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