Yay! So my holidays are going awesomely at the moment, and I'm very de-stressed out.

I've got a lot lined up this week, I'm going bowling tomorrow, then i'm off to party on Friday. Saturday, i'm off into town and watching Doctor Who, and then i'm going away for a few days.

Fun eh?

I'm slowly adding all of my games and examples, but I don't wanna do it all at once in case it annoys anyone :P

At the moment on Game Maker, I'm making a short shooting game which a may or may not upload. Here's a screenshot of what i got so far:

It's slightly graphically inspired by Jabberwock, and his game, Noctus.

I've also recently found out about blending on Game Maker (yeah, I know I'm slow). Quite cool isn't it?

Anyway.

Currently reading: Revision guides, and a book about the Skeleton, for my art project.

Currently watching: I saw Mr Bean on Sunday. Great film. "You're French is good!" "Gracias!"

Currently working on: Shootah.

Currently should be doing: Relaxing, and probably revision.

Oh yeah, i'll tell you about my Tooth Ache game ideas in next blog. Thanks!

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<b>Potatoes</b>

The potato (Solanum tuberosum) is a perennial plant of the Solanaceae, or nightshade, family, commonly grown for its starchy tuber. Potatoes are the world's most widely grown tuber crop, and the fourth largest crop in terms of fresh produce — after rice, wheat, and maize ('corn'). The potato originated in southern Peru [1] and is important to the culture of the Andes, where farmers grow many different varieties that have a remarkable diversity of colors and shapes. Potatoes spread from the Americas to the rest of the world after European colonization in the late 1400s and early 1500s and have since become an important field crop. The potato is also often strongly associated with Idaho, Prince Edward Island, Ireland and Russia, after having been adopted by these regions after the Columbian Exchange. However, it is native to Peru and was first cultivated by the Incas.

Nutritionally, potatoes are best known for their carbohydrate content (approximately 26 grams in a medium potato). Starch is the predominant form of carbohydrate found in potatoes. A small but significant portion of the starch in potatoes is resistant to enzymatic digestion in the stomach and small intestine and, thus, reaches the large intestine essentially intact. This resistant starch is considered to have similar physiological effects and health benefits of fiber (e.g., provide bulk, offer protection against colon cancer, improve glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity, lower plasma cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations, increase satiety, and possibly even reduce fat storage) (Cummings et al. 1996; Hylla et al 1998; Raban et al. 1994). The amount of resistant starch found in potatoes is highly dependent upon preparation methods. Cooking and then cooling potatoes significantly increases resistant starch. For example, cooked potato starch contains about 7% resistant starch, which increases to about 13% upon cooling (Englyst et al. 1992).

Potatoes contain a number of important vitamins and minerals. A medium potato (150g/5.3 oz) with the skin provides 27 mg vitamin C (45% of the Daily Value (DV)), 620 mg of potassium (18% of DV), 0.2 mg vitamin B6 (10% of DV) and trace amounts of thiamin, riboflavin, folate, niacin, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, and zinc. Moreover, the fiber content of a potato with skin (2 grams) equals that of many whole grain breads, pastas, and cereals. In addition to vitamins, minerals and fiber, potatoes also contain an assortment of phytochemicals, such as carotenoids and polyphenols. The notion that “all of the potato’s nutrientsâ€? are found in the skin is a myth. While the skin does contain approximately half of the total dietary fiber, the majority (more than 50%) of the nutrients are found within the potato itself. The cooking method used can significantly impact the nutrient availability of the potato.

New and fingerling potatoes offer the advantage that they contain fewer toxic chemicals. Such potatoes offer an excellent source of nutrition. Peeled, long-stored potatoes have less nutritional value, although they still have potassium and vitamin B.

Potatoes are often broadly classified as “highâ€? on the glycemic index (GI) and thus are frequently excluded from the diets of individuals trying to follow a “low GIâ€? eating regimen. In fact, the GI of potatoes can vary considerably depending on the type (i.e., red vs. russet vs. white vs. Prince Edward), origin (i.e., where it was grown), preparation methods (i.e., cooking method, whether it is eaten hot or cold, whether it is mashed or cubed or consumed whole, etc), and what it is consumed with (i.e., the addition of various high fat or high protein toppings) (Fernandes et al. 2006).