Editing Openai/6897769e-4ee4-800f-aba5-69cca34f701c (section)

===== Possibility: yes — many beyond‑Standard‑Model theories allow (or even predict) slow variation of dimensionless couplings (α, μ = mₑ/mₚ, etc.). Mechanisms include evolving scalar fields coupled to electromagnetism, cosmological dynamics, or environmental effects (e.g. strong gravitational or electromagnetic backgrounds). =====

Observational situation (qualitative):
• People test α with atomic‑clock comparisons, the Oklo natural reactor data, quasar absorption spectra at high redshift, the CMB and Big Bang nucleosynthesis.
• All these tests put very strict limits on any variation. In plain language: if α changes, it changes extremely slowly or by a very tiny amount that is currently close to or below detectability.
(If you want precise numeric bounds I can fetch the latest observational limits.)