Can the laws of Physics change over time?

 There is a published study that finds evidence something called the fine-structure constant has changed ever so slightly over the evolution of our universe. This, if true, will make us re-think a lot about our understanding and assumptions about 'universal constants' such as the speed of light, Planck's constant, the gravitational constant, and several others that are believed to be unchanging since the beginning of time. 

We can't know with any certainty if this new study is the final, accepted word on this topic, as many other groups will be going out to verify the results independently (which is how science is supposed to work). But over the years, we have wondered in class whether G, Newton's universal gravitational constant, could change over time? The reason we wonder is because Einstein says gravity is the consequence of curvatures in space and time. Well, since the universe is expanding and space and time can change and vary a lot locally, around big objects such as stars and galaxies, why would we expect G to be a universal constant since the stuff that allows for what we 'feel' as gravity is dynamic and changing?! 

We'll need to find out how this one goes when there are more studies into it!