>>I wonder how many asthma attacks every year because of the smoke?
>
>Fortunately, this year there was much less smoke than in previous years - still too much for my taste, though. I am not sure about the causes - perhaps a combination of more aggresive action by authorities, and the population gradually being educated through TV ads.

I've often wondered what New York City was like in winters in the late 1800s.
Or Boston or Chicago or Moscow or Oslo or...