Christina Lochman

Christina Lochman-Balk (October 8, 1907 – March 8, 2006) was an American geologist who specialized in the study of Paleozoic era fossils, formerly known as Cambrian Paleontology. Lochman specifically dealt with Cambrian trilobites and invertebrates. During her career, it was not very common for women to pursue degrees or careers in geology, which was studied mostly by men. Along with her research, she also served as a lecturer and professor at the universities Mount Holyoke, University of Chicago and the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology.

Lochman-Balk was unable to keep her designation of associate professor that she previously held at Mount Holyoke at the University of Chicago because it would violate contemporary nepotism rules, due to her close relationship with a current professor(her husband Robert Balk) rather than based on her merit as a geologist.

After her husband's death, Lochman-Balk continued her work as a lecturer at the New Mexico Institute of Technology and Mining until she became a full professor and the head of the geology department in 1957. Cambrian biostratigraphy of North America in 1958 and the Upper Cambrian Faunal Patterns on the Craton in 1970.

Geological era of study The fauna Lochman-Balk studied are mainly from the Cambrian Period. Her research also came across fauna from the Lower Ordovician epoch. One of the main early Cambrian epoch organisms she studied were Trilobites. These were a group of extinct arachnomorph arthropods from the class Trilobita. In addition to a strong focus on Trilobites specifically, Lochman-Balk was a pioneer in the study of Paleozoic Stratigraphy. She studied many of the periods contained within the Paleozoic era and the organisms during the era. It is at the end of this era in which Trilobites go extinct. Lochman-Balk worked with James Lee Wilson in establishing a generalized description, and timeline of the Cambrian era biostratigraphy in areas of North America. than could be developed with fossils found in the late Dresbachian and Franconian era's. That being said, the widespread distribution of Cambrian era fossils across North America made them a helpful index fossil. As more places were discovered that contained the fossils, it became easier to give context to the entire biostratigraphy in those areas. In 1939, Lochman-Balk’s research lead her to an advanced conclusion that the Elvinia zone of the basal Franconian had a more direct correlation to the base of the European section of the Upper Cambrian as opposed to the previously believed location of the Cedaria zone in the North American section. In the years following, additional information and evidence was collected supporting this discovery as geologists were becoming more familiar with the faunas of North American zones. Lochman-Balk’s work involving this concept enabled future zonal correlations to be much more exact.

Notability During the era in which Lochman-Balk's career took place (1933-1972) women were beginning to enter nontraditional professions and striving to succeed in fields dominated by men. Lochman-Balk was able to rise through the ranks and continually achieve titles and recognition that few women had ever received in the field of Geology through her own merit. She achieved great success and acclaim within the fields of geology and paleontology, being elected a fellow of both the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the Geological Society of America. In 1996, Lochman-Balk was recognized for her contribution to paleontology receiving the "Presidents Citation" from the paleontology society.