He has the rare chance, like 116 others, to choose the leader of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics. And who knows? He himself may become the successor of Pope Benedict XVI, who will be resigning on February 28. Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, who has ignited hope he would become the first Asian pope, belongs to a minority. He is among 11 Asian cardinals among a group of mostly Europeans, who have traditionally chosen one of their own to lead the Catholic Church. Most cardinal electors come from Italy, which has 21 prelates, or 17.9% of the group, joining the conclave days after Pope Benedict XVI steps down on February 28. Other cardinal electors include 19 Latin Americans, 14 North Americans, 11 Africans, and one from Oceania.

"What are the chances that Cardinal Tagle will become the next pope?" Following the announcement of Pope Benedict XVI's resignation on February 11, some Filipinos on social media were quick to jump in on the fact that not only is Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio "Chito" Tagle one of the 116 cardinals eligible to vote for the next pope. He is eligible to be one. In previous months, foreign journalists tagged Tagle as a possible papal contender. On social media, netizens even began using the hashtag #TagleForPope.

Performance and trust ratings of the country's top 5 officials declined significantly, according to Pulse Asia's latest survey released February 12, with Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile as the biggest loser. Across the board, the country's top officials - President Benigno Aquino III, Vice President Jejomar Binay, Enrile, House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr., and Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno - suffered double-digit declines in their overall performance rating between November 2012 and January 2013. Enrile suffered the most significant approval rating drop, from 73% in November to 46% in January, a decrease of 27 percentage points, according to Pulse Asia's January 2013 Pre-Election Survey. The survey noted that Aquino and Binay are the top two officials who are still enjoying majority approval ratings, despite significant drops.

Vice President Jejomar Binay opened the campaign period on February 12 by launching a tirade against the administration coalition Team PNoy, responding to attacks that he and his candidates are mere pretenders. “You charge us of being pretenders? Excuse me," Binay told reporters in Cebu where he was to proclaim the senatorial bets of the coalition he founded, the United Nationalist Alliance. Binay was reacting to Team PNoy’s TV ad and statements alluding to people who are just riding on President Benigno Aquino III’s popularity. Binay also accused the ruling Liberal Party, which runs Team PNoym of being elitist, and pointed to his history as a supporter of former President Cory Aquino, the president’s mother.

North Korea appeared to have carried out a threatened nuclear test February 12, with international monitoring agencies reporting a seismic event near the site of Pyongyang's nuclear test site. The tremor, whose magnitude was estimated at between 4.9 and 5.1, was detected at 11:57am (0257 GMT) with the epicenter in Kilju county, where the North's Punggye-ri test site is located. The US Geological Survey noted the seismic activity -- also confirmed by monitors in South Korea, China and Japan -- had a very shallow depth of just one kilometer (0.6 miles). Pyongyang has been threatening a "higher-level" nuclear test for weeks despite warnings of severe repercussions from the UN Security Council. If confirmed, it would mark the third time the North has detonated a nuclear device, following previous tests in 2006 and 2009.

The Nikkei Business Daily reported that Japan plans to donate an unspecified number of patrol boats to the Philippines, with each boat costing $11 million each. Both Japan and the Philippines are in separate territorial disputes with China, with Japan having a dispute over a group of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea and the Philippines having a row with several Southeast Asian countries over parts of the South China Sea. The donation of patrol boats would appear to strengthen ties between the two countries in addition to helping to maintain the peace.

"Cassius" has reclaimed his crown as the world's biggest crocodile in captivity after his rival for the title died, with the huge reptile's handler in Australia saying it will boost business. The 5.48- meter crocodile, kept in a park on an island off Australia's Queensland, held the record until "Lolong," a 6.17-meter suspected man-eater, was caught in the Philippines 17 months ago. But with Lolong's death from a mystery illness on Sunday, Cassius is once again on top. "The Guinness Book of World Records contacted us as soon as Lolong died," Billy Craig, a croc wrangler at Marineland Melanesia where Cassius lives said.

Twitter is upping the costs of its sponsored trends service. What once started out as a US$80,000 a day advertising scheme in 2010 has been raised to $200,000 a day, up from US$150,000 per day in 2012 according to The Wall Street Journal. Twitter explains the promoted trend advertising system is a means of allowing Twitter users to see "time-, context-, and event-sensitive trends promoted by our advertising partners. These paid Promoted Trends appear at the top of the Trending Topics list on Twitter and are clearly marked as 'Promoted.'" The visibility of the advertisement is high, and at the same time, everyone who sees the promoted trend knows it's ad-sponsored, lending a sense of honesty to the proceedings. As to whether the promoted trend system works, it will ultimately depend on the advertiser, the timing, and what's being offered.

The United States launched its latest Earth observation satellite February 11, enhancing an array of orbiting eyes that help with every from climate-change study to urban planning. The satellite was launched into space atop an Atlas rocket fired from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, NASA said. The Landsat Data Continuity Mission, or Landsat 8, was the latest in a line of satellites used since 1972 to continuously gather imagery from space of the Earth's land surface, coastal areas and coral reefs. The satellite will reach its operational orbit 438 miles (735 kilometers) over the Earth within two months and designed to have a minimum five-year life span.

Roger Federer welcomed the return to tennis of Rafael Nadal, but will not spend much time worrying about his long-time rival's progress as he concentrates on his own game with on February 13, start at the Rotterdam World Tennis. Defending his 2012 trophy, Federer said he has arrived relaxed and eager as he plays for the first time since losing a tight Australian Open semi-final to Andy Murray, then taking time off with his family in his homes in Dubai and Switzerland. "I saw a few pictures of Rafa, last week," said Federer, who joked: "I see he's still a left-hander - and his shirts looked good." Beyond the obvious natural curiosity, the 31-year-old with 17 Grand Slam titles has plenty on his own plate as he begins a run of events this week to be followed by the Dubai Open and the Indian Wells Masters next month in California.