Chinese media find silver linings in smog clouds
China's noxious air pollution has made people smarter, funnier and impervious to missile attacks, the country's official media reported this week, as a toxic cloud covering half of the country began to lift.
On Monday the website of the state broadcaster CCTV published a list of five "unexpected benefits" brought by the smog.
It said the haze had unified Chinese people, as they found solidarity in their complaints; equalised them, as both rich and poor people were vulnerable to its effects; enlightened them, as they realised the cost of rapid growth; and "made Chinese people more humorous", as smog-related jokes proliferated on the internet.
It had also helped to educate people, it said. "Our knowledge of meteorology, geography, physics, chemistry and history has progressed."
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/10/chinese-media-silver-linings-smog-haze