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kernelshap vs tern.mmrm

A side-by-side editorial comparison of kernelshap and tern.mmrm — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.

kernelshap vs tern.mmrm: at a glance

Featurekernelshaptern.mmrm
SectorAnalyticsAnalytics
Velocity score0.00.0
Sparks · 30d00
Top themesshap, model explainability, sampling algorithms, numerical correctnesspharmaverse, mmrm, tabulation, maintenance
Last editorial update9h ago45m ago
WebsiteVisit →Visit →

What is kernelshap?

kernelshap makes permutation SHAP practical past eight features, then fixes the kernel weights it had wrong.

kernelshap computes model-agnostic SHAP values in R through Kernel SHAP, permutation SHAP and an exact additive explainer. Version 0.8.0 added a sampling permutation-SHAP algorithm with standard errors and early stopping, lifting the practical feature ceiling past what the exact method allows. Version 0.9.0 then corrected a bug in how kernel weights were computed — exact Kernel SHAP now agrees with exact permutation SHAP — and moved parallelism from foreach to doFuture.

Read the full kernelshap trajectory →

What is tern.mmrm?

An MMRM tabulation package that has published nothing since its 2024 CRAN releases.

tern.mmrm wraps mixed models for repeated measures into the tern tabulation and plotting layer used by teal clinical modules. The visible history ends with three CRAN releases in mid-to-late 2024; before that the feed carries only automated version bumps from 2022, three of which have just been backfilled into the record. The most recent substantive change adds axis limit arguments to the LS-means plot.

Read the full tern.mmrm trajectory →

kernelshap vs tern.mmrm: editorial side-by-side

K
kernelshap
ANALYTICS
0.0

kernelshap makes permutation SHAP practical past eight features, then fixes the kernel weights it had wrong.

◆ Current state

kernelshap computes model-agnostic SHAP values in R through Kernel SHAP, permutation SHAP and an exact additive explainer. Version 0.8.0 added a sampling permutation-SHAP algorithm with standard errors and early stopping, lifting the practical feature ceiling past what the exact method allows. Version 0.9.0 then corrected a bug in how kernel weights were computed — exact Kernel SHAP now agrees with exact permutation SHAP — and moved parallelism from foreach to doFuture.

◆ Where it's heading

Two concerns drive this package: making exact methods reach further, and being demonstrably right. The first shows in the additive explainer, the optional background dataset and the sampling permutation algorithm; the second in unit tests written against Python's shap, credited fixes from outside contributors, and a willingness to ship a correctness fix that changes numbers people have already published. Speed work runs continuously underneath — direct solves replacing the Moore-Penrose pseudo-inverse, roughly 10% less memory.

◆ Prediction

The 0.6.0 and 0.7.0 notes each promised a stable 1.0.0 that has not arrived; with the weighting bug fixed and parallelism reworked, a 1.0 release is the most plausible next step.

T
tern.mmrm
ANALYTICS
0.0

An MMRM tabulation package that has published nothing since its 2024 CRAN releases.

◆ Current state

tern.mmrm wraps mixed models for repeated measures into the tern tabulation and plotting layer used by teal clinical modules. The visible history ends with three CRAN releases in mid-to-late 2024; before that the feed carries only automated version bumps from 2022, three of which have just been backfilled into the record. The most recent substantive change adds axis limit arguments to the LS-means plot.

◆ Where it's heading

Content per release is thin and largely organisational: a maintainer change, replacing scda with random.cdisc.data in vignettes, and adapting to new {mmrm} versions. The package appears to be in maintenance, tracking its upstream dependency rather than developing independently. The 2022 entries now visible are release-automation commits, not releases in any meaningful sense.

◆ Prediction

Nothing here signals new functionality; the realistic next event is another compatibility release when {mmrm} or {rtables} changes underneath it.

Alternatives to kernelshap and tern.mmrm

Other Analytics products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either kernelshap or tern.mmrm.

See all kernelshap alternatives → · See all tern.mmrm alternatives →

Recent activity from kernelshap and tern.mmrm

Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.

  1. 1y agokernelshapKernel weight bug fixed; parallelism moves to doFuture
  2. 1y agokernelshapSampling permutation SHAP with standard errors
  3. 1y agotern.mmrmAxis limits added to the LS-means plot
  4. 1y agokernelshapBackground data now optional; ranger survival support
  5. 2y agokernelshapFactor-valued predictions dropped
  6. 2y agotern.mmrmMaintainer change and scda replaced in vignettes
  7. 2y agotern.mmrmCRAN 0.3.0 release, mostly workflow housekeeping
  8. 2y agokernelshapadditive_shap() explains additive models exactly
  9. 2y agokernelshapFaster on plain data.frames
  10. 3y agotern.mmrmAutomated version bump to 0.2.1
  11. 3y agotern.mmrmPre-release branch merge
  12. 4y agotern.mmrmCI automation commit, no release content

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between kernelshap and tern.mmrm?

They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. kernelshap and tern.mmrm are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 0.0 vs 0.0, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.

Is kernelshap better than tern.mmrm?

Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. kernelshap and tern.mmrm are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 0.0 vs 0.0, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Analytics products to evaluate alongside.

What are the best alternatives to kernelshap?

Top kernelshap alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "kernelshap alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/kernelshap for the full list with editorial commentary on each.

What are the best alternatives to tern.mmrm?

Top tern.mmrm alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "tern.mmrm alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/tern-mmrm for the full list with editorial commentary on each.