This is nothing new. I've been making boats like this since I was a kid. All it takes is a calm pond with pine trees growing nearby.
Take a matchstick sized dry twig. Find a pine tree that's oozing sap from a scratch in the bark or a broken branch/twig. The sap should have the viscosity of syrup. Dip one end of the dry twig in the pine sap, bringing up a tear drop-sized dollop of sap. Drop your highly-advanced research vessel in a nearby pond and watch it put-put around for a good minute or so before all the sap is gone or it gets stuck in its own sap trail.
Thinking about it, you could probably do this at home with an actual match stick and some pancake syrup. It's just always been an outdoor sort of thing for me.