Enjoying a day off her seemingly endless world tour, Britney Spears stepped out with her sons Sean Preston and Jayden James Federline in New York City today (August 27).

With her hair tied up in her trademark rat’s next, the 27-year-old pop princess and her boys were joined by two huge bodyguards as they strolled the streets of Manhattan.

Meanwhile, it appears that Britney is playing a crucial part of Alzheimer’s diagnosis — and she doesn’t even know it!

Researchers at the Cleveland Clinic have reportedly found a way to identify people who are most at risk of developing Alzheimer’s. How? By simply ask them whether they are able to recognize celebs such as the Womanizer singer.

According to a report in the journal Neurology, when people most at risk of Alzheimer’s try to recognize a famous name, their brains activate in very different ways from those of people who aren’t at risk. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, doctors can see this difference and offer an early diagnosis.