Virtual laboratories (VL) can provide students with learning experiences simulating practical experiments in a traditional laboratory. Evidence is presented that students believe in the truth of results from the VL as well as those from the traditional laboratory. The underlying reasons for these beliefs are explored, through Russell's description of truth and Kuhn's paradigm model. This paper describes part of a small-scale study of level 3 science students in a large Further Education college. Questionnaires and semi-structured interviews are used to investigate learning in both traditional and virtual laboratories; to gain insights into users' views and experiences. Differences emerged through themes of: reality; control; skills; theory; truth and risk. The paper focusses on truth; students tend to believe the results of both real and virtual experiments. Their belief in the VL is based on external authority, such as universities, large companies and their teacher, while belief in the traditional laboratory is based on empirical evidence. When presented with a conflict between the results, their level of confidence in the VL appears to correlate with their A-level grades.