Flying Buttresses on Modern Architecture

Tonight, I caught a segment on the news about the new state-of-the-art Dallas Cowboys Stadium. Normally anything to do with American football bores me, but something caught my attention. While discussing the stadium's massive size, they noted that architects opted to put additional arch support on the outside of the structure. As soon as I saw it, I immediately recognized them for what they are: flying buttresses.

Buttresses were a medieval architecture development used to support a large structure by holding it up. Flying Buttresses were external arches placed on the outside of a large, heavy building, usually a cathedral. They are fairly rare to see in contemporary architecture, especially in terms of function because they are considered...well...medieval. But in the case of this new stadium the buttresses appear fully functional, a lot bigger, just not as pretty.