Python import error: cannot import name 'six' from 'sklearn.externals'

Question

I'm using numpy and mlrose, and all i have written so far is:

import numpy as np
import mlrose

However, when i run it, it comes up with an error message:

 File "C:\Users\<my username>\AppData\Local\Programs\Python\Python38-32\lib\site-packages\mlrose\neural.py", line 12, in <module>
    from sklearn.externals import six
ImportError: cannot import name 'six' from 'sklearn.externals' (C:\Users\<my username>\AppData\Local\Programs\Python\Python38-32\lib\site-packages\sklearn\externals\__init__.py)

Any help on sorting this problem will be greatly appreciated.

Jala

pip install six should install six and solve the problem – Flavory

That isn't the issue. mlrose is trying to import six from sklearn, you will still get this error if you have six installed. – Sumter

Answer 1

Solution: The real answer is that the dependency needs to be changed by the mlrose maintainers.

A workaround is:

import six
import sys
sys.modules['sklearn.externals.six'] = six
import mlrose

Sumter

Newer version of mlrose with dependency fixed is now mlrose-hiive: pypi.org/project/mlrose-hiive or github.com/hiive/mlrose – Marchpast

This solution worked for me with another package, skrules, giving the same error. – Sesame

mlrose-hiive does not work on the tutorials. Specifically simulated_annealing in the very first tutorial does not work in the fork. The dependency may be fixed, but he broke the original without talking about it in any documentation I've found. – Lexington

I made an issue for it github.com/gkhayes/mlrose/issues/59 – Triparted

This also works for the SkopeRules package. – Biauriculate

Answer 2

from sklearn.externals import six is deprecated, use import six instead

Nieshanieto

Doesn't seem like a very helpful response, unless you think @Jala here is a developer of mlrose (I definitely didn't get the sense from his question that he is). – Iloilo

Yeah, relatively new to mlrose so I wouldn’t know what to do there – Jala

This solution worked for me. Scikit-garden had the line from sklearn.externals import six and I changed it to import six. Seems to work fine now. – Kept