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> Can you point me to any research proving that printed text should not
> fall
> below a minimum font size?
It depends on the font size and not on the page size. The size of letters
vary according to the font that you select. For example, Arial 8pt is
bigger than TNR 8pt and the former is readable than the latter because
the measurements of both the fonts are different. Moreover, the
characteristics of Serif and Sans Serif fonts differentiate these fonts
from each other. Decide the font type and size based on the type of
document (online/print) and by conducting a readability test. Of course,
there are other factors such as spacing between letters, words, and
lines, number lines per page, justification, etc. that you may want to
consider while designing your template. Refer the "Design and Typography"
section in the Chicago Manual of Style. It may give you some vital
information on selecting fonts and designing paragraphs for various types
of text in a document like headings, body text, excerpts, foot notes,
etc.
