“变成了一种痴迷”
用英语怎么说？

Some math problems continue to haunt researchers long after they have been solved. Even when a proof is celebrated, dissatisfaction can linger because the argument is too complex or fails to provide deeper insight. The four-color theorem is one of the most famous examples. The question is simple: given a map, can you color every region using only four colors so that no neighboring regions share the same color? In the nineteenth century, this problem quickly turned into an obsession for mathematicians. In 1879, a purported proof appeared, but it was flawed. A century later, a computer proof solved it, yet sparked controversy because mathematicians could not easily check it by hand.

有些数学问题在被解决很久之后，仍然会继续困扰研究人员。即使某个证明受到了赞誉，人们也可能依然感到不满，因为论证过程过于复杂，或者未能提供更深层次的见解。四色定理就是最著名的例子之一。该问题表述很简单：给定一张地图，能否仅用四种颜色为每个区域着色，使得相邻区域不共享同一种颜色？在19世纪，这个问题很快对数学家们变成了一种痴迷。1879年，一个声称的证明出现了，但它存在缺陷。一个世纪后，计算机证明解决了该问题，但却引发了争议，因为数学家无法轻易通过手工进行核对。