SWAMP is short for Studies of Work Atmospheres and Mass Production. The group's stated goal is "to find creative expression within elements of culture that are inherently counter-creative." Of the many darlings of consumer culture that the group touches on again and again is fast food. One of their most outlandish and amazing projects, the Meat Helmet, came in response to McDonald's recent "adult happy meal" that came with a pedometer. SWAMP's Meat Helmet hooks the user up to a series of pneumatic 'air muscles' that force the wearer to make chewing motions. Based on the amount of calories entered into the helmet's CPU (say, 560 for a Big Mac), the 'muscles' pump the appropriate amount of chewing to work off the meal. They estimate that chewing burns roughly 70 calories per hour, so a solid eight-hour jaw flappin' workout should work off that Big Mac. The SWAMP site contains more pictures and a pretty slick video presentation, too.
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