Hello Wall is trying to identify invisible information such as atmosphere and making it visible. The change from far distance to close distance is translated into changes from invisible information such as atmosphere to explicit data points. The change in distance is a metaphor for unveiling more specific information. In other words, getting closer means "I want to know more." What are the other ways to say "I want to know more"? I personally think the duration of having eye gaze is a good indication. Would this project can achieve the same effect by using the duration of eye gaze?
The feedback loop effect is very interesting. The ambient display is an representation of the atmosphere, but itself also has impact on the atmosphere. I think this can have the danger of infinitely amplify the input similar to microphone and speaker: people feel more stressed because seeing others are stressed until everyone is stressed. Would the reactive environment and ubiquitous computing have the same effect? Would people's implicit cues become harder to understand as a result of having ubiquitous computing device?
