Cotton Mather, the Puritan minister whose name became synonymous with the phrase “witch hunt” for his connection to the notorious Salem Witch Trials of 1692-1693, is also known for his contributions to medicine and science, notably his advocacy for smallpox inoculation. Mather’s observations and theories related to natural sciences, astronomy, botany, medicine, and the nascent fields of embryology and epidemiology are the focus of a new book, co-edited by Boston College doctoral student Andrew Juchno. Cotton Mather’s Curiosa Americana: Scientific Letters to the Royal Society comprises more than 80 letters Mather wrote between 1712 and 1724 to the Royal Society of London, a collection of letters known as Curiosa Americana. Mather’s letters document New England’s flora and fauna, unusual meteorological events, medical advancements and transatlantic scientific discourse, revealing Mather as a pivotal figure in the early Enlightenment, deeply engaged in the era’s defining debates. Co-edited with Georgia State University Professor Emeritus of English Reiner Smolinski and Yale University Jonathan Edwards Center Director Kenneth Minkema, Cotton Mather’s Curiosa Americana: Scientific Letters to the Royal Society represents the first complete, edited, and annotated collection of Mather’s letters. More from BC News.