Think of the word convert as meaning change, whether it is a person who adopts a new belief, or a changing action, such as when you convert dollars into euros. Many times we can catch a word's meaning by looking at its origins. In this case, the Latin con means around, while vertere means turn..
Maple sap runs best when it freezes at night (e.g. in the high 20-degrees Farenheit range) and then warms up above freezing the next day (in the range of 40-degrees Farenheit and hotter). If it stays warm at night and warm during the day or if it freezes at night but barely goes above freezing the next day, sap does not flow as well or hardly at all.
All maple syrup has the same amount of maple sugar, but the maple flavor can be different as we shall learn. The sap is collected into a large holding tank and from there is fed into the sugar house (the place where the magic happens!). In the sugar house, it is systematically poured into an evaporator (pictured here).