  We introduce an approximation scheme for the Hodgkin-Huxley model of nerve
conductance which allows to calculate both the speed of the traveling pulses
and their shape in quantitative agreement with the solutions of the model. We
demonstrate that the reduced problem for the front of the traveling pulse
admits a unique solution. We obtain an explicit analytical expression for the
speed of the pulses which is valid with good accuracy in a wide range of the
parameters.
