Annihilation of electron-positron pairs into mesons

We estimate the cross section for e+e-→mesons using (i) ρ dominance of the electromagnetic current, (ii) known couplings of resonances to states involving the on-shell ρ meson, and (iii) the assumption, for the purpose of obtaining numerical estimates, that the meson couplings vary slowly with virtual ρ mass. We conclude that the cross section at 2-GeV total energy could be comparable to the e+e-→μ+μ- cross section. We also attempt to estimate a cross section from the statistical model of Bjorken and Brodsky.