Because the nearest 25 star systems have black-lettered labels, and the next nearest 25 systems have red-lettered labels, the students can calculate the star number density in those regions of space (a sphere and a spherical shell, respectively) to determine whether the star number density varies greatly or whether a structure like the Local Bubble is visible (it isn’t).
Finally, the model can lead to a discussion about life in the universe. I pose questions such as these: How many Sun-like stars are there, as a percentage of all stars in the model? If life is unlikely to have evolved
around a multiple-star system, how many stars does that criterion remove? How many years would it take to have a two-way radio conversation with civilizations inhabiting various star systems?