Chinese people have traditionally cherished the virtue of eating bitter, or the ability to endure hardships without complaint. As a befitting sign of their tenacity to achieve a worthy goal despite extreme difficulties, the Chinese character for perseverance is a knife suspended over a heart.

But breathing smoggy air has unnerved even the toughest of the tough among them as it is becoming part of their daily life and they see no bright spot at the end of the proverbial tunnel. The nation that has seen unprecedented economic prosperity was shrouded by a collective concern over the smothering smog, which has wreaked havoc in Beijing and its neighboring provinces in northern China in recent years, swept across more than 100 central and eastern cities early this month.

The smog and filthy air forced the closure of schools and a ban on private cars. Hapless residents anxiously waited for strong winds to blow away the particulate matter, aware as they were of doctors' warnings that the suffocating, apocalyptic smog could cause respiratory diseases.