baltimoresun.com - Business

Cashing in on modern-day gold rush

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0500

How to get the best price for your unwanted jewelry

Eileen Ambrose: As economic struggles continue, many consumers have scoured jewelry boxes and drawers for gold baubles that have gone unworn for years but could bring in extra cash. Smyth's Timonium store has bought jewelry from about 12,000 customers this year, double the number from all of 2008, and 12 times the usual annual number. And the consumers' timing is good. Gold prices last week hit new highs, trading at more than $1,140 an ounce.

Generous holiday tipping, without overspending

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0500

A leaner budget might clarify which people truly make a difference in your life

Ciena Corp. wins bid for Nortel assets in bankruptcy auction

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 08:23:00 -0500

Ciena Corp., a Linthicum-based maker of fiber optic gear, said Monday that it won a bid for the optical-networking assets of Nortel Networks Corp. in a deal worth $769 million.

Job losses to bottom out in 1Q 2010; unemployment still high

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 08:01:00 -0500

Economists expect the joblessness that has weighed down the nation's economic recovery will start to slowly abate in 2010, but they predict consumers will continue to keep a tight rein on spending, according to a new survey.

Especially during recession, caseworkers fear client threats

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0500

Some clients take frustrations out on those trying to help

One frustrated client hurled a piece of concrete through the window of a welfare agency. Another threw her car keys at a welfare worker before being escorted away. At one point, a woman on public assistance even took a swing at a worker.

Blockbuster vaccines on horizon for AIDS, Alzheimer's, herpes

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0500

Malaria. Tuberculosis. Alzheimer's disease. AIDS. Pandemic flu. Genital herpes. Urinary tract infections. Grass allergies. Traveler's diarrhea. You name it, the pharmaceutical industry is working on a vaccine to prevent it.

Switching to a new cell phone can take an emotional toll

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0500

She's gone.

Nintendo's Mario endures even as game titles come and go

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0500

You might call him the Mickey Mouse of video games. He's reminiscent of a doughnut, round and sweet and comforting. He's also a vessel, devoid of a real personality so you can live vicariously through him.