Leave it to the brainiacs at MIT to come up with a huge leap forward in artificial feet while my efforts at the project are stalled out at the conceptual phase. Go figure. Anyhow, the folks at the MIT Biomechatronics Lab (Biomechatronics! Awesome.) created this artificial foot that solves a lot of the issues that previous models had.

By using actuator motors, catapult springs, a ribbon clutch, and other stuff I probably should have looked into before deciding to make an artificial foot, they created a foot that is more stable on uneven surfaces and on stairs, feeling more like the real thing than the wooden peg legs that our pirate ancestors were stuck dealing with. No word on when this will get off the drawing board and on to some ankles, but it shouldn't be too long until I finish my version, so don't choose one over the other too quickly. — Adam Frucci

Artificial Foot Patent, via Oh Gizmo!