m. c. de marco: To invent new life and new civilizations...

Via SFScope: The RAND Corporation has released its legendary report, Habitable Planets for Man by Stephen H. Dole in PDF format.

An attempt to make an estimate of the probabilities of finding planets habitable to man, where they might be found, and the number there may be in our own galaxy. The characteristics of a planet that can provide an acceptable environment for man are presented in detail. The stars nearest the earth, most likely to possess habitable planets, are itemized. The author also discusses special and unusual planets that may be discovered, how new environments might affect people who migrate to them, how to search for habitable planets.

If your worldbuilding spirit isn’t up for 150 pages of hard science, Errant Dreams has advice on disguising the real-world origins of your fictional world.