In this report we analyse the conversations with visitors to Dutch Design Week. We see that citizens often fall back on primeval stories, so-called arche-narratives. One well-known narrative is ‘Pandora’s box’. This is about the concern that radical scientific interventions can bring unforeseen dangers and risks. The beauty of the narratives is that they contain norms and values. Using these norms, and especially the values, researchers, funders and policymakers can ensure that synthetic cell technology develops in a socially responsible way.