"The Proper Study" is a science fiction short story by American writer Isaac Asimov. Inspired by a painting of a head surrounded by random psychedelic designs, it was commissioned by Boys' Life, and published in the September 1968 issue. (The other story commissioned for the picture was The Faun. by Poul Anderson.) The Proper Study was reprinted in the 1975 collection Buy Jupiter and Other Stories. The title is taken from a quote by Alexander Pope ("The proper study of mankind is man."). Source: Wikipedia (en)