Who was the scientific leader behind the first successful 'splitting of the atom'?

Ernest Rutherford, a name synonymous with early atomic physics, is the correct answer because of his groundbreaking work on atomic structure. While other scientists on the list made significant contributions to their respective fields, Rutherford specifically pioneered the understanding of the atom's composition. Born in New Zealand, Rutherford spent much of his career in Britain, particularly at the University of Manchester and the University of Cambridge. His famous gold foil experiment, conducted in 1911, revealed that atoms have a small, dense, positively charged nucleus. This discovery revolutionized the prevailing "plum pudding" model of the atom. Although Rutherford didn't literally "split the atom" in the sense of nuclear fission (that came later with others like Otto Hahn and Lise Meitner), he was the first to artificially transmute an element in 1917 by bombarding nitrogen with alpha particles, effectively changing it into oxygen. This is why he is credited as the scientific leader behind the first successful "splitting of the atom" in the broader sense of altering its fundamental structure. The other scientists listed made contributions to medicine, computer science and medical imaging, but not atomic physics.