def weight_scale(weight):
    """
    This scale starts out linear, then switches to a square-root scale at x=2.

    >>> weight_scale(-1)
    -1.0
    >>> weight_scale(0)
    0.0
    >>> weight_scale(1)
    1.0
    >>> weight_scale(2)
    2.0
    >>> weight_scale(5)
    4.0
    >>> weight_scale(10)
    6.0
    """
    return 2 * max(weight - 1, 1) ** .5 + min(weight, 2) - 2