Well, I'm no physicist, but this don't pass the smell test.
Speed (unit-of-distance over time) is not Force (ergs) is not Velocity (speed+direction).
Does gravity respect particle theory?
Perhaps the article was translated (poorly) from another language. Perhaps it's too early for this sort of thing... where's my coffee cup?
Well, seeing as how it is from the University of Missouri-Columbia, I would kinda doubt that.