There is "research"--in which one is poring over an existing body of knowledge and possibly "tweaking around the edges" to investigate properties described therein, conducting surveys to gauge response (e.g. "market research"), and the like. This kind of research is a superficial investigation into well-established, well-known subject matter, possibly with an interesting approach or to find a context-specific answer to a question, but not one that fundamentally adds to the body of knowledge.

Then there is "research"--in which one is exploring a new, known but unexplored, or a known, previously investigated but complex problem in a novel way with the intent to expose previously unknown properties and add to the body of knowledge. This is the kind of "research", e.g., physicists, mathematicians, and some engineers do.

I hazard a guess, without knowing for sure, the parent sees a "barrier" between these two kinds of research, and that he'd place this article in the first category rather than the latter.